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Chapter Text

I stirred as I let out a groan, slowly opening my eyes when I noticed that something was on top of me and that's when I started feeling alarmed as I placed my hands on whatever was keeping me buried and freaked out while hyperventilating since I couldn't see because of everything being pitch black.

I pushed against whatever it was and felt it shift as I heard the sounds of stone and other debris moving, telling me that I was buried under rubble and kept pushing as hard as I could while letting out a strained groan.

"Shit, come on!" I yelled before I finally moved the rubble out of the way, sitting up to take in huge gulps of air as I coughed and wheezed before I got a good look at where I was and let out a gasp of shock.

It was nighttime but that wasn't what shocked me as I saw nothing but ruins that used to be buildings and cars that were rusted and mostly wrecked, but it was the skeletons that I could see all around me in cars and on the ground that stunned me into silence while nothing but pure horror and disbelief filled me.

"Oh god...what the fuck happened?" I wondered as I went and stood up, seeing some crooked signs that told me I was in Pasadena but this was impossible since it looked fine the last time I saw it.

At that moment, a cold chill ran down my spine as I took in everything all around me, slowly starting to understand that something went wrong and the amount of devastation I was seeing told me that it had to have been big to wipe out an entire American city.

I decided to start walking and figure out how this happened, maybe locate survivors since there was a good chance people were still alive in this wasteland and they could help me as I kept wandering through the ruins.

Pretty soon, I could hear faint sounds of people running and strange metallic noises with sounds that sounded like laser fire as I got closer when I stepped onto a street with a confused look before people in raggy clothing started running past me and a few of them were suddenly killed by lasers.

"Holy shit!" I shouted as one of the people noticed me and frantically gestured for me to run just before a loud bang happened next to me and everything went spinning until I felt nothing but pain as I found myself staring up at the night sky while feeling dazed.

I groaned as I slowly sat up while my ears were ringing, raising a hand to clutch my head while I saw one guy lying on the floor and another one kneeling next to him and saying something that I couldn't quite make out, then I was alarmed to see what appeared to be a metal skeleton walk over to them stiffly before grabbing the guy above the man who was laying on the floor.

I saw the metal man or whatever it was hold the human by the back of his jacket with one hand before it raised some kind of weapon against his chest while the man lying down reached out with an expression of terror, then I was horrified to see the metal man blast the human with its weapon and thought about how this was familiar until I recognized that thing and realized with a growing panic at where I was.

'Oh fuck me, I'm in the Terminator universe?' I thought as panic and terror hit me since I was in the future war that was seen in the movie franchise, the worst place to wake up in because now I was a target of the machines and they would most certainly kill me.

I quickly got up as I saw the machine throw the dead body away and turn its attention to the man who was lying on the ground before I quickly looked around and saw a piece of rebar on the ground, going to pick it up and I knew that it wasn't going to do any damage to that thing but the rebar should stun it for a few seconds to allow the man to run.

I charged at the machine and swung the rebar as hard as I could, striking the thing in the head that jerked to the right as it was stunned by the hit when I hurried over to the man and held out a hand for him to take, then he grabbed it and I helped him up before we started running to a wrecked bus and I gestured at the space underneath it.

"Hey, we'll crawl under the bus and run once we're on the other side since it'll slow the T-800 down!" I suggested loudly over the laser fire, and the man nodded as I heard the T-800 marching after us while we reached the bus.

I let the man crawl under first and followed him as he seemed to grab something that was in the dirt, only I was snatched by the ankle and fear flooded my system as I instinctively went to harshly jab at the machine's metal face with the rebar, seeing its cold glowing red eyes staring back at me as its permanent grin would haunt my nightmares when I was yanked out and it aimed the plasma rifle at me while I raised my arms in a futile attempt to defend myself.

Suddenly, the machine was shot at by laser blasts and was killed, allowing me to crawl back under the bus where the man was waiting on the other side and holding out a hand for me to take, and I grabbed it before he pulled me out and I saw he had a radio in his hand before it came to life.

"Good, you stayed so let me talk to him," a male raspy voice instructed before the man held out the radio to me.

"Here," the man offered before I stared at the radio warily, then I took it and hesitantly pushed the button to talk to whoever was speaking.

"H-Hello?" I asked tentatively.

"Listen to me very carefully, you must stay with him at all times because he's vital to your survival," the stranger told me gruffly before I made a face at that.

"Hold on, who the hell is this?" I demanded just before I heard the sound of a hunter-killer approaching, much to my growing horror.

"No time, there's an evacuation point on the other side of town so you both need to get there," the stranger said before he stopped talking and the man looked at me as I handed him the radio.

"Come on, we probably have no choice but to do what he says because we'll get killed if we stay here," the man told me, and I couldn't argue with that so we made our way through a ruined building and stayed away from any openings so that we wouldn't be spotted by the machines.

"As soon as you two get down the street, turn right and run as fast as you can," the stranger spoke suddenly, making me jump a little as his voice coming through the radio startled me slightly but we kept going until we went up a ramp of debris that led to the roof and went over to where the edge of the roof was at before dropping down into the street.

"Terminators, run!" someone yelled just as I spotted a patrol of T-800s approaching from the left and my eyes widened.

"Fuck, move it!" the man yelled at me, and he didn't have to tell me twice as we turned to the right and ran as fast as we possibly could when the machines started shooting at us.

Even though I was sprinting as fast as I could, my legs felt like they weighed about a thousand pounds and it was like one of those dreams where someone was running at full speed but the thing chasing them always caught up.

Honestly, I didn't know how close the line of T-800s was as the guy next to me and I ran down the old street, trying to keep behind the old wrecked cars for cover from the red plasma shots that were hitting the dirt around us, but there was no way in hell for me to look back without getting shot or probably tripping over something.

I could see other survivors as well, more frightened people in rags running out of the surrounding buildings just ahead of the machines with most of them getting cut down by plasma shots after taking a few steps while my eyes teared up and I almost broke down at the senseless carnage all around me.

Seeing the future war on film was one thing, but being a part of it was a whole other thing entirely so I wondered if those poor people would've just stayed where they were if the two of us hadn't gone running down the street and how many screams were there from a survivor who had taken a couple of shots that were meant for us?

Suddenly, the road hit a dead end and there was nothing but a brick wall and collapsed rubble ahead of us, so we were forced to head to the left while we kept running and passed a couple of rusted cars on their sides during our escape.

I saw a collapsed building that led to an opening somewhere in the basement and we ran right towards it, ducking inside just as the opening behind us was about to collapse and I grabbed the man before I threw ourselves out of the way until rubble and debris fell and blocked the opening, sending up a cloud of dust when it made me and the man cough as we laid on the ground.

"Are you two okay? Talk to me," the voice on the radio said urgently before I gestured for the man to hand me the radio and I took it.

"We're alive...so you mind telling us who the hell you are?" I questioned raspily as I sat up and saw that my hoodie, Metallica t-shirt, and jeans were already looking worse for wear.

"It doesn't matter because right now, you two need to find a way to get out of there," the stranger told me before he hung up and I scowled as the man next to me also sat up while I passed the radio back to him.

"Thanks," the man told me as we stood up and I felt awkward since I had no idea what to do and it was taking everything I had to not burst out crying from what I'd already witnessed.

"Well, now that we're taking a little breather, we should probably introduce ourselves so I'm Adam Sullivan," I greeted as I held out a hand, and the man eyed it for a few seconds until he took it.

"Private Jacob Rivers of the resistance, so it's good to meet you," Jacob said as he shook my hand, and now that we had time to catch our breaths, I finally noticed that he was wearing the standard gray uniform that members of the resistance wore but it did have some tears in it while Jacob was looking a bit rough like everyone else in this hellish wasteland.

"So, can we trust that guy on the radio?" I wondered since I've never seen this in any of the movies, which means that I was in uncharted territory and had no idea when I was or if I was close to the end of the war when it came to the timeframe.

"I don't know, but we have no choice but to do what he says since he knows my name and he knew who you were too," Jacob replied and that made my eyes widen since I wasn't expecting that.

"What? That's impossible, I've never met the guy in my life and he knows who you are too, so how the fuck does this guy know who we are?" I asked in disbelief before Jacob shrugged.

"No idea, but we should keep going if we want to stay alive," Jacob pointed out, and I nodded before we continued.

There was an opening that was boarded up with wooden planks, but a few swings from my rebar took care of that and we entered what looked to be a basement that appeared to have been somebody's home judging by the old bed to our left, only it doesn't appear to have been used for a while so the previous owner must've abandoned it.

Either way, we didn't find any supplies that could help us so Jacob and I went up the stairs that led to what used to be a store of some kind as the windows were boarded and I could still hear the sounds of plasma rifles still shooting at whatever poor souls were still out there while Jacob and I moved past the counter and was about to leave the store when Jacob's radio went off.

"Careful, there's an HK aerial flying by, so don't let it see you two," the stranger warned, prompting me and Jacob to quickly take cover behind the counter and we made sure to stay away from the windows as I heard the sound of the HK flying above us outside.

We waited until it passed by and the sound grew fainter, causing me to let out a quiet sigh of relief as Jacob and I stood up before we cautiously went to the front exit and peered out to make sure the flying terminator was gone, not seeing anything so Jacob and I slowly left the store and began our way to the right.

"Okay, it's gone and I've left something for you both so keep moving," the stranger instructed, only neither of us responded in the event any machines were lurking nearby.

We kept moving while making sure not to make too much noise as we navigated past a bunch of wrecked vehicles and entered what used to be the kitchen of a restaurant, going to the front before the radio went off again.

"Stop, T-800s are patrolling the front of the building so make sure they don't see you two," the stranger informed us quietly as I heard the mechanical footsteps outside and saw dark figures with a glint coming off of their metallic bodies.

"Oh shit!" Jacob hissed quietly as he and I took cover before we were spotted, then we waited for the patrol to move on and I let out a sigh of relief once they were gone.

"Fuck me, that was way too close," I muttered and Jacob nodded as we stood up and started to make our way to the back of the restaurant when the radio went off again.

"Okay, there should be two guns for you both so pick them up," the stranger said as Jacob and I entered the back room, then we spotted two handguns with four mags of ammo and a couple of medkits resting on a barrel.

"Thank god, something we can defend ourselves with besides that rebar," Jacob mumbled as he took what appeared to be an M1911 handgun while I picked up the second handgun, which was a Beretta M9, and used my belt to awkwardly holster the rebar.

I took the two 9mm ammo mags and put them in my pockets while Jacob went and pocketed the 45. ammo mags in his pockets before I grabbed one of the small first aid kits and placed it in my hoodie pocket while Jacob took the other one and went to speak on the radio.

"Okay, we got the weapons, ammo, and medkits so now what?" Jacob asked.

"Next, there's a vent hidden behind a picture and it will lead you both out of there," the stranger told us as I started looking around, then I spotted what the man on the radio was talking about and went over to it.

I stuffed the gun in the back of my jeans and kneeled, then I moved the picture out of the way and gestured for Jacob to follow as I began crawling through the vent and heard him enter the vent right behind me, the two of us going through the vent until we found ourselves outside.

I saw ruined vehicles and rubble around us as we pulled out our guns and got them ready while we moved forward, passing rusted cars and debris while keeping our guns aimed at the ground as I recalled what my dad taught me at the shooting range once until the radio went off as we approached a wrecked school bus.

"Hold up, there are spider scouts up ahead so keep those guns ready or try to sneak past them if you don't want to engage," the stranger warned us before he hung up, making me and Jacob take cover at a van next to us and slowly inched over to the back until I peered out.

I saw a group of machines that looked like large spiders as they were zapping a dead body with their tasers, confusing the hell out of me since I didn't recognize those models so it made me wonder just how much has changed already from my very presence.

Still, Jacob and I didn't have a lot of ammo so stealth seemed to be the better option while Jacob appeared to have come to the same conclusion so we slowly moved out of cover and stayed as quiet as we could as we proceeded to sneak past the spider scouts, making sure they didn't detect us and sometimes using the cars as cover whenever the spider scouts scanned the area for any surviving humans.

Thankfully, we managed to slip by without being detected and received more instructions from the stranger to head into the nearby garage and that it was important, though I wasn't sure that I could trust him since he could be a terminator mimicking a human voice to lure us into an ambush, but we continued forward regardless and entered the garage.

The place looked mostly intact, which was a rarity since most buildings were destroyed as I saw tools laid out on workbenches and an old car that was resting on a lift as if somebody had been planning to work on it a long time ago, but probably never had the chance to because of judgment day.

The car's tires were falling apart and the tools were all rusted, so they wouldn't be useful if I were a mechanic and I wasn't, but I spotted a crowbar in the corner and perked up and went over to pick it up until I discovered that it was slightly heavy but I walked over to Jacob and held it out to him with one hand.

"Here, this should do if you were to run out of bullets," I offered, then Jacob took the crowbar and stuffed it under his belt as he nodded.

"Thanks, that'll help," Jacob told me until I suddenly heard voices coming from nearby and held up a hand to signal him to be quiet.

"Patrick, come over here," a female voice whispered.

Jacob looked fully alert as he signaled for me to get my gun ready, and I raised it as we slowly headed to the door that led to the next room before stopping at both sides of the door, then I carefully turned the knob and cautiously opened the door just enough so that whoever or whatever was on the other side wouldn't see us.

I was relieved that it wasn't a Terminator, just two regular people consisting of a woman and a kid as they were dressed in tattered clothes like every other person in this world as the woman was kneeling in front of the kid and appearing to argue with him.

"We can't do this right now, kiddo," the woman tried to reason but the kid backed away from her.

"I don't want to go with you!" the kid refused loudly, making me cringe since he was being too loud and that might draw the wrong kind of attention.

"I know you don't, but we can't stay here," the woman pointed out before the door creaked slightly and it caused the woman to quickly stand up before she moved the kid behind her in a protective manner.

"Who's there?" the woman demanded while she started to look scared and so did the kid as he began to hug her around the waist with a look of fear in his eyes, then Jacob and I put away our guns and entered the room with our hands up to placate them.

"It's okay, we're human," I reassured gently, but the woman still gazed at me warily until she looked at Jacob and started appearing relieved.

"Thank god, one of you is from the resistance!" the woman exclaimed, probably louder than she meant to as she looked back at the kid and assured him, "See, Patrick? They're going to help us."

"No, they're going to get us!" Patrick yelled as he backed away and the woman looked at us pleadingly.

"Please, you need to help me because my little brother just won't listen," the woman begged while Patrick shook his head frantically.

"No, I'm not going so leave me alone!" Patrick shouted as he looked terrified, and I felt awful for him since no kid should ever have to grow up in such a hellish environment so I slowly approached him and knelt in front of the kid.

"It's okay, you have every right to be scared, but you need to be strong for your sister right now because it's not safe here so we'll keep you and your sister safe," I said gently as I showed Patrick a warm smile and he relaxed slightly.

"You promise?" Patrick asked timidly as I heard the sounds of plasma fire getting closer, and I knew that we didn't have much time before the machines caught up to us so I nodded.

"Don't worry, we won't let them hurt you and your sister so I promise that we'll keep you both safe," I replied and Patrick started looking a little hopeful, though he was still a little bit uncertain.

"O-Okay," Patrick said nervously but he was being a little bit quieter as I stood up and looked at the woman, who sent me a thankful look.

"Thank you, I'm Jennifer by the way," Jennifer introduced and I smiled.

"Good to meet you, I'm Adam Sullivan and that's Private Jacob Rivers from the resistance," I said as Jacob nodded at Jennifer before he cleared his throat.

"Listen, we heard that there's an evacuation point near here so we need to get to it fast before the annihilation line shows up," Jacob told Jennifer, who turned her attention to him.

"I know, my people are organizing it so we're heading there right now," Jennifer replied, which was good news to me since we could escape from the machines before they showed up.

"Good to hear, now let's get out of here before the machines arrive," I suggested, and with that said, Jennifer and Patrick started packing up as the older sibling looked at Jacob.

"Where's the rest of the resistance?" Jennifer asked and Jacob shrugged.

"I don't know since I came here looking for them myself, and that's when I met Adam here as we were ambushed by a T-800 patrol and he saved me from one of them," Jacob explained and that didn't sound good since if he was a member of the resistance who was looking for the others, then his unit or the base he was stationed at must've been ambushed.

"So, it's just you then..." Jennifer trailed off, sounding disappointed before I scratched the back of my head.

"Don't worry, they probably must've fallen back further into the city so that they could set up a secure defensive location, so they wouldn't abandon everyone here unless they had no choice," I reassured, causing Jennifer to send me a nod before she and Patrick zipped up their backpacks and put them on.

Jacob and I pulled out our guns and got ready to leave when I heard the sound of an aerial about to pass the garage when we quickly ducked down as its searchlight shined in through the windows, then it was gone and we stood up before making our way to the exit.

From what I saw as we left the garage, most of whatever ground Jacob and I had gained on the annihilation line had been lost as visible plasma fire was seen while we continued east to where the evacuation point was with Jennifer and Patrick leading the way.

I didn't know how I wasn't breaking down right now since all of this was crazy, though I was probably in shock or something and pure adrenaline was the only thing keeping me going since a normal person would break down sobbing from all of this but either way, we kept moving through the ruins until we came across a couple of old rusty cars and I heard the chilling sound of three T-800s about to approach our location up ahead.

"Terminators!" Jennifer hissed before I frantically gestured for her and Patrick to take cover.

"Oh crap, hide!" I whispered urgently before we all ducked over to the two cars and took cover.

Jennifer and Patrick took cover at the car on the left while Jacob and I took the one on the right, then we waited tensely and tried not to make any noise as I peered up to see the metal nightmares about to pass our hiding places, making me duck down so that one of them wouldn't spot me as two of them walked past the cars without noticing us but the third one stopped and just stood there for a second.

'Oh god, please don't find us,' I thought as I started holding my gun up in front of me, feeling utterly terrified at the knowledge that death was literally around the corner and nearly swore when the endoskeleton turned its head to look at Jennifer and Patrick's hiding place.

I subtly gestured for them to move, and they complied as the T-800 started walking to the car and began looking inside of it while Jennifer and Patrick crept around to the back of the car, just as the T-800 finished searching the inside of the car and went over to look at Jennifer and Patrick's former hiding spot until it moved on and I let out a quiet sigh since that could've ended badly as we all stood up.

"They're gone," Jacob said and I nodded.

"Thank god for that, now let's get out of here before they come back," I suggested, and nobody argued with that as we continued to make our way to the evacuation point.

"Erin said these attacks happen more often as the line gets closer," Jennifer commented as we kept moving through the ruins and keeping our eyes and ears open.

"This Erin, has she seen the annihilation line?" Jacob asked.

"Seen it? She's been on the other side of it and she tried to warn us, but we didn't listen," Jennifer explained and my eyes widened in shock.

"She was on the other side of it? Holy crap, I can't imagine what that's like and she must be pretty tough to survive something like that," I said while sounding impressed before Jennifer smirked at me.

"Yeah, she's pretty resourceful and you don't want to get on her bad side," Jennifer told me before I nodded.

"Noted, now how far are we from the evacuation point?" I questioned as we arrived in an open area.

"We're here," Jennifer replied and I was relieved to hear that as we continued moving until we came across a gruff-looking man with a shaved head while he was carrying an M16A1 rifle.

"How gracious of you to finally join us and where's your father?" the man asked rudely with a southern accent, and I knew already that I wasn't going to like him since he acted like an asshole.

"He's not coming," Jennifer said grimly and the man scowled.

"Goddamn it...tell Ryan that we need to leave, now!" the man snapped as I noticed the remains of Spider scouts nearby so I assume that he must've taken care of them as Jennifer and Patrick started to head to a location under a bridge that was still intact.

The man saw me and Jacob before his eyes narrowed in suspicion, but he didn't say anything as Jacob and I followed Jennifer and Patrick when we arrived at where they went, then I could see three more survivors that consisted of a middle-aged dark-skinned man with a rifle, an elderly woman, and a wounded guy who looked worse for wear as the dark-skinned man greeted Jennifer with a look of relief and they chatted for a little bit until he saw us.

"Oh, one of you is from the resistance? Jennifer explained everything, so thank you both for making sure that she and Patrick got here safe," the man told us gratefully.

"It's no trouble, we were glad to help so are you the guy we talked to on our radio?" Jacob asked when the man shook his head.

"No, I don't think so because I haven't been able to reach anybody for a while now but listen, I know that Colin wants us to go, but I don't know about leaving anyone behind since Jennifer just got here and you said yourself that you and that scavenger that's with you had heard someone on your radio, so there could be other people out there.

Look, if it's not too much trouble, could you go and look for them? You're part of the resistance so it's your call, but I would be thankful if you did," the man said and Jacob frowned thoughtfully before I cleared my throat to get his attention.

"Hey, it wouldn't hurt to go search for more survivors since there's strength in numbers, after all," I suggested until Jacob sighed.

"Okay, I'll search for other survivors," Jacob said and the man looked thankful.

"Good, I'll get the bus ready but before you go, talk to Erin since she might be able to get you a medkit and take this since you'll probably need it," the man said as he handed Jacob an Uzi, the resistance fighter taking it.

"Thanks," Jacob said as he stuffed the M1911 in his belt and held the Uzi while he checked it.

"No problem, I'm Ryan and it's good to meet you two so stay safe," Ryan said before Jacob started walking to the elderly woman who was tending to the injured man, but I cleared my throat to get his attention.

"Hey, you said that you were going to check for survivors, not us so I'm not coming with you?" I asked in confusion and Jacob nodded.

"Yeah, it would be a lot better if I went alone since there's a lesser chance of being spotted that way and you'll be able to help defend this place if it were to get attacked by the machines," Jacob pointed out, and I couldn't argue with that logic.

With that said, I let Jacob go talk to who I assume was Erin before he and the elderly woman chatted for a little bit and I decided to take a look at what would help us escape, and I grimaced since the bus did not look to be in good condition as only wooden planks were covering the windows and a chain-link fence was wrapped around some sections as if it was crude armor and a half-rusted plow was welded to the front.

I felt really bad for these people because it was a miracle that they survived for so long on their own, which was impressive considering the kind of environment they were living in for who knows how many years after judgment day happened.

Still, I decided to check on Jennifer and Patrick to see how they were doing so I finished examining the bus and walked over to where Jennifer and Patrick were, seeing the older sibling comfort her brother until she noticed me approaching and stood up.

"Hey, how's he doing?" I asked and Jennifer sighed.

"He's doing okay, still a bit shaken up but he's fine so I wanted to thank you for calming him down earlier," Jennifer told me until I nodded.

"No problem, he was scared and I don't blame him for it since no kid should ever have to grow up in this kind of environment," I stated before Jennifer smirked.

"You're not from around here, are you?" Jennifer asked, taking me by surprise before I smiled.

"What makes you say that?" I questioned.

"I don't know, just the way you talk and you don't look as weary as the others," Jennifer replied, making me chuckle.

"Do I really look that obvious? Yeah, I'm not from around here since I just arrived in the city a few hours ago," I replied, coming up with a cover story since the truth would've been too unbelievable and she would think I was crazy.

"So, where did you live?" Jennifer inquired curiously before I shrugged.

"I actually don't live anywhere, just been moving from one place to another since I learned that the best way to stay alive is to keep on the move, and I usually stayed away from the cities since I've heard from other scavengers that they were death traps," I lied, trying to make it sound as believable as possible.

"So, what made you decide to come here if you heard that the cities were too dangerous?" Jennifer asked.

"Didn't have a lot of options, supplies are scarce out there and I couldn't find anything in an abandoned town I had searched a couple of days ago, so I had no choice but to come here in the hopes that I would find something useful, though that wasn't a good idea since I got caught up in the ambush and lost my weapons and gear before I met up with Private Rivers," I replied just as the person in question approached us.

"Hey, I'm going to be heading out so I'll be back, hopefully with more survivors," Jacob told me and I nodded.

"Sure, stay safe out there," I replied before Jacob left and I continued chatting with Jennifer.

Later on, I was done talking to Jennifer and went to talk to Ryan to see if I could help out, then he had me make myself useful by taking stock of whatever supplies his group had and I checked to see what was useful.

I saw that they barely had ammo, food, and water, so I knew that we needed to find more supplies or we weren't going to make it out here without food or water, then there was the problem of how low we were on ammo so it wouldn't be good if we were to get ambushed by the machines.

I had pointed this out to Ryan and he was understandably concerned, but he admitted that there wasn't a lot we could do about it at the moment so he had me check on Erin and the wounded guy, who was named Mark and I offered to help her with him.

She refused and said that she was fine so I left her alone, though I noticed that Jacob had been gone for a while and it slightly concerned me since there was a good chance he might be in trouble and I hated this, not knowing if Jacob was okay or not but all I could do was wait and see.

I made sure to stay away from Colin since the guy looked like trouble and the way he glared at me sometimes showed that he certainly wasn't happy about me or Jacob being here, though I think I heard him mumble something about me and Jacob being more mouths to feed.

Pretty soon, I heard the sounds of machines showing up just before the metal bastards ambushed us with gunfire breaking out, then I had Jennifer and Patrick help Erin carry Mark onto the bus and have Jennifer get the engine started before I pulled out my gun and hurried to join Ryan and Colin in defending the bus.

I saw different Skynet models that I'd never seen before as some of them hovered and others looked like tanks with spider legs, so I decided to call them scout drones and armored spiders since they fit as I was shooting at one scout drone and targeted the red glowing eye since that looked to be a weak point.

Turns out I was right since a few shots at that area sent it down sparking until it blew up, and just when I thought that Jacob might be dead, he soon showed up with another survivor and fired the Uzi at an armored spider before it was destroyed after getting shot multiple times in the red glowing eye.

"Hey, thank god you showed up with the extra firepower because we were about ready to start chucking rocks at them!" I shouted over the gunfire as Jacob made his way to me.

"No problem, but we need to get the hell out of here because more are coming!" Jacob responded just as loudly and that caused Ryan to look back at the bus.

"Jennifer, what's the hold-up?!" Ryan shouted as I saw more scout drones approaching and swore under my breath.

"More tin cans incoming!" Colin pointed out before the machines fired at us and we all ducked into cover.

"Jennifer, hurry the hell up!" I yelled frantically just before I heard the sweet sound of the bus' engine starting and the old vehicle pulled out from under the bridge and came to a stop behind us.

"Get in!" Jennifer shouted, and she didn't have to tell me twice as I bolted out of cover and ran around to the right of the bus before quickly heading inside with Ryan, Colin, and Jacob right behind me.

"Hold on, we're getting out of here!" Jennifer added before she hit the gas and I was nearly knocked to the floor as the bus swerved to the right and I managed to sit down on one of the seats as we soon got away from the bullets and plasma being shot at us until I let out a sigh.

"You okay?" Jacob asked me and I nodded.

"Yeah, I really hate those things," I commented tiredly and Jacob chuckled.

"Tell me about it," Jacob agreed just before the adrenaline started wearing off and nothing but pure exhaustion hit me.

"I don't know about you, but I'm getting some sleep after what we've been through so wake me up when it's morning," I admitted tiredly before Jacob nodded.

"Okay, you get some rest because you need it," Jacob said before he walked away to take a seat nearby.

I was exhausted and in shock from what happened, the knowledge that I was in a fictional universe hitting me hard, and the trauma I just experienced made me tear up before I started crying, but I made sure to keep it quiet since I didn't want anyone asking what was wrong, then the exhaustion started hitting me hard and I found myself passing out from the shock before I even realized it.

Chapter Text

My ears were ringing as I was in pain, feeling dazed and trying to regain myself as I barely heard the muffled sounds of explosions and plasma fire when a blurry figure hurried over to me to check if I was alright, then my vision cleared up where I recognized him as Jacob as he shouted something at me until my hearing cleared up.

"Adam, you need to get up and get back into the fight!" Jacob yelled urgently as he went back to shooting his plasma rifle.

I sat up and I clutched my head, looking around and seeing ruins while dead members of the resistance and scavengers were everywhere as T-800s, spider scouts, scout drones, armored spiders, and HK aerials were shooting at every human they detected.

Acting quickly, I picked up my plasma rifle and got back into the fight as I shot down a scout and targeted a T-800 next, rendering it to scrap as my eyes were focused on the enemies ahead of us while Jennifer and the other scavengers were trying their best against the metal monstrosities.

I reloaded my plasma rifle just as I saw Colin getting blasted to pieces and I swore under my breath while I focused on an armored spider and destroyed it with a few shots to the red glowing eye, then Ryan and Erin were the next to go down and my eyes widened in horror.

"Shit!" I shouted as I saw the dark-skinned man and the elderly woman getting blasted mercilessly by plasma fire before I retaliated by throwing a grenade at a group of T-800s and the explosion shredded them into many pieces.

I ran out of cover and hurried over to where Jennifer was as she kept Patrick safe and fired a shotgun at a drone when she was ambushed by a T-800 that knocked the shotgun out of her hands and blasted her in the face, killing her instantly as I was starting to descend into denial that this was happening just before the metallic monster went to Patrick's hiding place and ripped him out of the wrecked car before lifting the little boy by the neck with one hand.

"No!" I screamed in pure horror as I tried to get there as fast as I could, but it was like my legs were made of lead and everything was moving in slow motion as the T-800 looked at me with that nightmarish grin as Patrick flailed around until the machine jerked its hand to the right and a loud snap occurred with Patrick's body becoming limp, horrifying me in the process.

The machine tossed Patrick's dead body away and I let out a savage scream of rage and anguish as I started blasting the T-800, emptying my rifle as I kept screaming while the metal monster was being ripped to shreds by the plasma until it exploded.

I ran over to the metal corpse and reloaded before firing several more shots to turn it into scrap as I let out my rage and hatred on this monster until there was nothing left, then I quit firing my rifle and breathed heavily as I teared up and started crying at the loss I just witnessed before Jacob had run over and grabbed me by the shoulder.

"Adam, I need you to get it together because we're getting slaughtered here!" Jacob yelled desperately, just before a silvery metallic blade exited his chest and his blood hit me in the face.

I was shuddering and hyperventilating as Jacob was lifted into the air while blood spurted out of his mouth and he held an expression of fear and agony, then he was thrown away and I saw the one responsible for killing him.

The machine that killed him was a T-1000, its humanoid body silver and shiny as it stared at me with no emotion on its unnaturally smooth face while its bladed arm fluidly shaped back into a regular humanoid one.

I quickly aimed at the monster and pulled the trigger, only no red plasma came out and I frantically searched my tactical rig to discover that I had no ammo left, then I used one last desperate attempt to protect myself by throwing the rifle at the T-1000 but it batted the weapon away with one arm.

The machine made of liquid metal started approaching me and I was forced to run as fear flooded my system at the thought of being sliced to pieces by the shapeshifting silver monster as I ran as fast as my legs could carry me, though I knew it was useless since that thing can outrun a car and it proved that by quickly catching up to me and I was sent into a crater from being shoved from behind.

I fell into the crater and hit the ground hard, making me let out harsh coughing and choking noises as I couldn't breathe and it was like a couple of my ribs were broken, then I heard the T-1000 land right behind me and I looked back with my eyes wild with terror.

I desperately tried to crawl away as the machine followed me until I was grabbed by my shoulder and sent onto my back as I let out pained groans, though I crawled back weakly until my back hit a dead end and I breathed heavily with a look of fear on my face as the T-1000 walked over to me menacingly before it hovered over me with its hands resting on the debris that was located on both sides of my head.

The T-1000 simply tilted its head slowly as it appeared to study me for the best course of action and I was so afraid at the thought of being gutted or sliced into pieces when I noticed that the machine started losing cohesion as its default form began to lose shape and my eyes widened in horror as it started to melt on top of me.

The T-1000 oozed all over me as my body was engulfed by the silvery metallic liquid, the cold silver goo having the sensation of thick jello as it flowed all over me and I was being consumed by the monster as I realized that it was going to drown me.

I couldn't struggle or anything as my body was being covered and only my head was left as the rest of my body looked silver and shiny while the slime flowed up my neck and was about to enter my mouth as my mind broke and I started screaming uncontrollably when the silvery goo slid into my mouth and went down my throat as my screams became a metallic screeching sound until my head was the last to get consumed.

I jerked awake and let out quiet gasping breaths as I quickly looked around, then I relaxed as I saw that I was still on the bus with the others and noticed that it was morning already before I let out a relieved sigh.

'Christ, talk about one hell of a nightmare,' I thought and wasn't surprised that I had such a fucked up dream after what I'd witnessed last night as I saw Jacob coming over to sit down next to me.

"You okay? I saw you moving around and muttering under your breath the whole time you were out," Jacob said, then I started feeling embarrassed as I scratched the back of my head.

"Sorry, just had one hell of a nightmare so how far are we from our destination?" I asked as I moved around and stretched to loosen up.

"Not far now, we should be approaching LA soon," Jacob told me as I saw Erin leaning from her seat to talk to Ryan.

"Listen, Mark's about to pass out so we need to stop soon," Erin stated and Ryan nodded.

"Okay, we'll do that," Ryan replied before Erin got up from her seat and went to check on Mark.

"I hope that Mark fella will be okay," I spoke up and Ryan looked back at me.

"Don't worry, Erin has good medical training so Mark's in safe hands, but I'm curious about where Private Rivers here was stationed," Ryan admitted as he turned his attention to Jacob.

"I'm from the Pacific division," Jacob said and that caught my attention while Ryan looked surprised.

"Pacific? You're certainly a long way from home so what are you doing out here?" Ryan questioned.

"My entire division was wiped out and I'm trying to get in touch with the south division because I have a message for Commander Baron," Jacob explained while I was shocked by that.

"My god, your entire division got wiped out? I'm sorry," I said sympathetically and Jacob sent me a nod as Ryan looked like he was trying to process what he heard.

"So, it's true? The annihilation line's coming?" Ryan questioned in disbelief but Jacob shook his head.

"It wasn't the annihilation line, it was something else," Jacob said grimly.

"What could be worse than the annihilation line?" I asked uneasily and Jacob looked at me.

"To be honest, I'm not sure what it was," Jacob admitted, causing a chill to go down my spine since whatever attacked Jacob's division must've been something extremely dangerous just before the bus went across a bump so hard that it almost sent my face into the seat in front of me if I hadn't planted my hands on it just in time.

"Goddamn it, that's as far as this piece of shit will go!" Colin snapped irritably as I could see that we were entering LA, my home that looked like a shell of its former self and it was awful seeing it like this while Ryan sighed.

"Okay, let's get off the road so pull up over there," Ryan instructed as he pointed out a small group of buildings that were a short distance ahead.

The buildings didn't seem nearly as damaged as the others around them so Colin pulled off the road and drove to the center of them, just before the bus' engine finally stalled and I didn't need to be a mechanic to know that we weren't going anywhere for a while, at least not by vehicle.

With that in mind, I helped Erin carry Mark while everyone else got off the bus as I looked around but I didn't see immediate signs of the machines in the area, not to mention that a lot of ground had been gained on the annihilation line during the hours of driving since Pasadena so no plasma shots were heard either.

It was quiet here, except for random gusts of soft wind kicking up dust and there were no signs of life around the buildings while I noted that the place looked like some kind of service area for vehicles with a few different garages that were all the same size as the one where Jennifer and Patrick were found in while the buildings were set across from a single, much larger building that looked like it used to be the main office or headquarters of the place.

"Alright, we got some time on them so let's not lose our heads," Ryan told us as I was straining a little since Mark was heavy, even with the help of Erin.

"I'll be on the fucking lookout for tin cans," Colin said gruffly before he walked off to do who knows what and Ryan turned his attention to Erin.

"Erin, you do what you think is best for Mark while I see what I can do about the bus," Ryan instructed, causing Erin to nod before Ryan turned to look at Jacob and had him go search the main building to see that it was safe.

Jennifer came over to help me and Erin carry Mark while Jacob went to investigate the main building, then he soon came out and announced that it was all clear before we went inside and headed down to the basement, though it wasn't easy since Mark had to be carefully carried down so that his injuries wouldn't get worse.

I was pleasantly surprised when I saw that the basement had beds and couches for everyone to sleep on so Jennifer, Erin, and I carried Mark over to one of the beds and carefully laid him down on one of them, then I let out a sigh of relief and decided to check the place out a little more until I saw Erin storming back outside and tearing Colin a new one for not doing his assigned role and he scoffed at that when Jacob approached me.

"Hey, found something I think you're going to like," Jacob told me, confusing me slightly but he gestured for me to follow him and I stayed right behind him until he took me to a storage room of some kind and my eyes widened when I saw that it had plenty of food, water, and a few weapons with tons of ammo inside.

"Holy crap, talk about a good find," I commented while looking impressed and Jacob smiled as he went and picked up an M16A1 rifle before handing it to me.

"Here, this will probably be better than that handgun you have on you and I found a tactical rig that you can wear to store ammo on it, then there's a leg holster that's also in here so you can use it as well," Jacob told me as I entered the storage room and found what he was talking about.

I placed the rifle against the wall and removed my hoodie, seeing a few cuts on me that had scabbed over but they didn't look too bad as I slipped on the tactical rig and took a few mags of ammo for the rifle before I stored them in the ammo pouches and went to take the leg holster.

I strapped the holster on my right leg and pulled out the M9 from the back of my jeans so that I could put it in the holster, then I put my hoodie back on and left it unzipped while I took the rifle and walked out of the storage room with a bottle of water just in time to see Jacob finishing up a conversation with Colin before the gruff man walked away and I looked at the resistance fighter.

"What was that all about?" I asked before Jacob looked at me.

"Colin had scouted out the area and saw something that caught his interest, so he wanted me to come with him to check it out since it might be a resistance outpost," Jacob explained.

"Okay, I'll talk to Ryan and see if he needs anything while you guys are gone but be careful around Colin, he's not the most friendly type and I don't exactly trust him to watch your back," I warned and Jacob nodded.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine so see you later," Jacob said before he made his way to the stairs and he was gone after that.

I checked on everyone else here to see how they were doing and left the building to see if Ryan needed anything, seeing the older man working on the bus and grumbling under his breath as I approached him and cleared my throat to get his attention.

"Hey Ryan, how's the bus looking?" I asked as Ryan stopped what he was doing and turned to look at me until he saw that I was better armed but he didn't comment on it.

"Seems that the repairs are going to take a couple of days, so how's it looking inside?" Ryan inquired.

"There's a lot of supplies in the main building so somebody lived there at some point, though it wouldn't make sense as to why they would abandon such a good setup," I pointed out and Ryan nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, it seems too much of a convenience so better keep your eyes open, and speaking of supplies, you're welcome to take whatever's useful inside this crate but make sure to leave some behind for the rest of us," Ryan offered when I shook my head.

"Thanks, but I'm good and you guys need those supplies more than I do, so do you need help with anything?" I asked and Ryan looked thoughtful for a moment until he perked up.

"Actually, there is something you could help me with because Jennifer told me that you're a scavenger from outside the city, so if you were to go out and locate a set of tools, that would be greatly appreciated since I must've lost mine during the escape last night," Ryan stated before I nodded.

"Sure, I'll see what I can do," I replied and Ryan smiled.

"Thank you, now take this radio so that we can stay in contact with each other," Ryan said as he handed me a walkie-talkie and I slipped it on a pouch that was on my rig.

"Thanks, I should get started so I'll be back," I said and started to make my way into the ruins as I let out a shaky breath since I was going to be on my own out there so I had to be extremely cautious since the slightest wrong move will get me killed.

'Fuck, not good,' I thought in alarm as I was hiding from a squad of terminators that consisted of eight T-800s and four armored spiders.

I had started to explore the ruins for the tools that Ryan needed, making sure to avoid patrolling machines as I searched intact buildings and discovered that one had an old backpack that would fit me and I put it on before continuing to search for the tools.

There wasn't a lot left since most places had already been looted by scavengers or resistance fighters a long time ago, which was a pain in the ass but I kept looking anyway since there was a good chance someone missed something and that was when I found myself in an old trainyard when I spotted the patrol and quickly ducked into a train car before shutting off the radio and stayed as quiet as I possibly could.

I knew that it would be suicide taking on that patrol with the weapons I currently had and especially since I was alone, so all I could do was hide and pray that they moved on since I was screwed if they decided to stick around for a while.

I held my breath when I heard the patrol start to pass by the train car I was in, feeling terrified at the thought that even my breathing would give me away so I waited and felt my lungs burning for air when the patrol finally moved on, then I started gasping quietly as I took in as much air as possible.

'Holy crap, that was close so I hope I never encounter another patrol like that again,' I thought as I turned on the radio and went over to the door that was open slightly before peering outside, seeing that it was clear so I exited the train car and quickly left the trainyard before the patrol decided to come back.

I kept moving through the ruins, making sure I wasn't spotted by any patrols as I continued searching through more intact buildings until I came across two that were across from each other with the door on the one to the right looking like it had been forced open recently, so I assume that either Jacob and Colin or someone else had broken in there just before I heard what appeared to be barking that was coming from the building on the left.

"A dog?" I muttered in confusion, then I decided to check it out so I raised my rifle and entered the building.

I took a look around on the ground floor, seeing that it used to be a diner of some kind and I couldn't find where the barking was coming from, then I heard the sound again and managed to pinpoint it above me so I had to get upstairs somehow.

Luckily, after searching around some more, I found a set of stairs that led to the second floor so I cautiously went up the steps and found myself in what used to be a hallway that led to an apartment with one of the doors being locked.

I heard the barking sound coming from one of the doors so I took cover next to the door and slowly reached my hand out at the knob, turning it as my heart was racing and I started sweating a little before I quickly opened the door and aimed inside.

What I saw on the other side was a german shepherd puppy that was looking up at me and panted as its tail began to wag, making me lower my rifle before I slung it and kneeled in front of the puppy, holding my hand out so it could sniff my hand.

"Hey, buddy, what are you doing out here all alone?" I wondered as the puppy licked my fingers and tilted its head, then I petted the little fella as I checked its gender and could see that it was male.

He was cute, that's for sure and I recalled Patrick looking miserable when I checked on him and Jennifer earlier and an idea came to me, seeing that this little guy would be perfect for cheering him up so I smiled as I scratched the puppy behind the ear and he let out a whimper of bliss.

"Well, I know a kid who would love to take care of you so let's get you back to my group since you'll be much safer there," I said as I removed my backpack from my shoulders and placed it down, unzipping it and picking up the puppy before placing him into the backpack.

I zipped the backpack up enough to secure the puppy but left it open slightly so his head could poke out, then I put my backpack on and proceeded to leave the building before I continued to search for the tools that Ryan needed.

I continued walking, using wrecked cars or debris as cover from time to time when I heard an explosion off in the distance that was so loud that even I heard it from where I was so it would hopefully draw the attention of the machines for a while as I kept going, then I eventually came across a garage that had a few spider scouts and a single armored spider patrolling the area so I was forced to take cover behind a wrecked car.

'Of course, the one place that might have what Ryan needs is infested with those things,' I thought with a sour expression as the puppy whimpered slightly, causing me to soothe him by reaching back to scratch him behind the ear and he settled down after that.

I looked at the patrolling machines and studied their pattern to see if I could sneak past them, then I saw a rock and eyed an old bus that was nearby before an idea formed in my head and I picked up the rock, testing its weight and gauging the distance until I leaned out of cover and threw the rock at the bus.

The rock struck the side of the bus with a loud metallic bang and that got the attention of the machines as they started scurrying over to the bus, investigating the noise and I used the distraction to move past them until I quietly opened the door and went inside.

I carefully shut the door so that I wouldn't make any noise and began to search the place, making sure to be quiet so that I wouldn't be detected as I investigated an office that was in front of me and found a book that'll teach me how to pick locks.

'Huh, this will come in handy so I'll read it later,' I thought as I pocketed the small book and left the office since there was nothing else that looked useful.

I saw an open vent during my search and crawled through it, making it to the other side and I spotted a set of stairs that looked like they led down to a basement, so I slowly went down the steps while aiming my rifle when I reached the basement and lowered the rifle once I didn't hear any signs of any of Skynet's creations down here.

I looked around and made sure to search every inch of this place when I spotted a toolbox just sitting on the floor, and I went over to kneel down before I opened the toolbox and inwardly cheered when I saw that it had everything Ryan would need to fix the bus and took out my radio to contact the older man.

"Ryan, I found a toolbox that has everything you need to fix the bus so I'm heading back right now," I said while keeping my voice down.

"Good job, I'll be waiting," Ryan replied before he hung up and I put away the radio until I looked back at the puppy.

"Well, time for you to meet your new owner," I whispered before the puppy licked my cheek in response.

I quietly chuckled since that tickled but I needed to focus on the task at hand, and that was to get back without being spotted so I carried the toolbox and made sure not to move it around too much since the sound of the tools rattling around would surely attract attention from the machines.

I made it back up to the ground floor and saw that the machines were back to their regular patrol pattern so I had to sneak around them and decided to use the wrecked cars for cover, slowly getting past the spider scouts and the armored spider while keeping my head down until I had gotten away from the garage and smirked since those Skynet models weren't all that bright.

I continued to make my way back as I avoided other patrols that were hunting any humans that were still in the area, managing not to be seen in the process when I eventually made it back to Ryan and the others as the older man saw me approaching him and he perked up as I held out the toolbox for him to take.

"Here, you wouldn't believe the number of tin cans I encountered out there while looking for this," I said before Ryan took the toolbox and sent me a grateful look until he saw the puppy poking his head up from my backpack and looked at me curiously.

"Thank you, this will definitely make the repairs go faster but what's with the dog?" Ryan asked, and I looked back at the puppy before returning my attention to Ryan.

"I found this little guy while I was out scavenging and I remembered that Patrick didn't look all that happy, so I figured a new friend would cheer him up," I explained, then Ryan looked surprised before he smiled.

"He'll be happy to hear that, and Jennifer would be thankful that you went out of your way to cheer her brother up so don't let me keep you," Ryan suggested with a wink before he went back to work on the bus with the tools.

I was confused as to why he winked at me, but I shrugged it off and went inside the building before going down to the basement, heading to where Jennifer and Patrick were until they noticed me and smiled.

"Hey, you're back so where did you go?" Jennifer asked.

"I was out scavenging for Ryan and I brought him the tools he'll need to fix up the bus quicker, but I have a surprise for Patrick," I said and Patrick looked up at me curiously.

"A surprise?" Patrick inquired, then I removed my backpack and placed it on the ground before I unzipped it fully and grabbed the puppy gently so that I could lift him out of the bag.

"Surprise~" I sang as I showed Patrick the puppy, causing the boy to widen his eyes in excitement as the puppy let out a single bark.

"A puppy! He looks so cute, so can I keep him?" Patrick asked as I placed the puppy down in front of him and he laughed as the puppy licked his face.

"Well, taking care of a dog is a big responsibility and you'll have to ask your sister if it's okay," I pointed out before Patrick looked up at Jennifer with a pleading expression.

"Jennifer, can I please keep him?" Patrick begged and Jennifer chuckled before she nodded.

"Sure, but you'll have to take care of him and Adam is right when he says that it's a big responsibility," Jennifer said before Patrick beamed.

"Don't worry, I promise that I'll be responsible," Patrick vowed before he turned his attention to the puppy and Jennifer looked at me.

"Thank you for doing this for him," Jennifer told me gratefully.

"It's no trouble, the poor kid's been through a lot so he deserves any kind of happiness he can get in this cruel world," I said just as I stood up and went to see how the others were doing.

Later on, Ryan approached me and said that he was contacted by Jacob and that the resistance fighter explained that Colin had spotted someone but the gruff man described that the scavenger was acting strangely so he decided to follow him to the factory, then Jacob had lost contact with him and required assistance so Ryan asked me to go and help out and now I was making my way to the factory until I met up with Jacob.

"Hey, good to see you," Jacob greeted and I nodded.

"You too, still no word from Colin?" I asked before Jacob shook his head.

"Nothing, I have a bad feeling about this," Jacob admitted uneasily and I noticed that he was carrying a shotgun now, but I didn't comment on it as I motioned my head at the entrance to the building.

"Come on, he might be hurt so we should hurry if that's the case," I pointed out until we entered the factory and I could see a dark hallway on the other side of the doors.

I raised my rifle and Jacob did the same with his shotgun, the two of us starting to make our way down the hall and I began feeling tense since anything could be around the corner when Jacob reached for his radio.

"Colin, respond!" Jacob hissed as we went around the corner and aimed down another hallway and Colin finally responded.

"Be quiet, I'm still following that guy and something isn't right with him," Colin whispered before I let out a quiet sigh of relief.

"Listen, Adam has joined up with me so we're on our way towards your location," Jacob informed him as we slowly went up a flight of stairs and continued our way down another hallway that was more lit up from the sun shining through the broken windows until we arrived in a locker room of some kind.

"Hold on...shit, he got away from me so I'll try to see if...what the-" Colin said before he suddenly stopped talking and I heard gunfire erupting close by until a short scream from Colin came through the radio, making me jump and Jacob tensed up.

"Colin, what happened? Colin, do you read me?" Jacob questioned urgently, only there was no answer on the radio and a sinking feeling appeared in the pit of my stomach.

"Jacob, we need to get to him right now," I said tensely, and Jacob nodded as we started moving more urgently down the hallway and went up a set of stairs when we arrived in an engine room.

We kept moving as we navigated the room, checking the corners as I started to get scared since whatever happened on the radio sounded serious and we needed to get to Colin quickly because there was a good chance that he was hurt until we went down a path and froze at the sight of blood that was on the floor and splattered on an old machine.

"Oh fuck," I whispered as my heart started racing since that did not look good at all and we moved forward more tentatively after that.

We turned around the corner, and I could see Colin's rifle just laying on the middle of the floor while I gulped and my breathing picked up slightly since it looked like the blood trail went around another corner and moved before aiming until I saw something that made me pale significantly.

I saw Colin or what was left of him while he was dead and his body is currently impaled on a piece of rebar that's sticking out of a pillar, the man's eyes glazed over as his face was stuck in an expression of agony, and terror before I gagged in revulsion at the horrific sight that would be burned into my mind for the rest of my life as Jacob and I slowly proceeded forward.

Suddenly, I was grabbed by the back of my hoodie and found myself being thrown forward as I flew through the air, losing my rifle in the process while I crashed onto the floor and rolled across it before coming to a stop as I got the breath knocked out of me.

I coughed and hacked harshly while it felt like my ribs were bruised and I heard Jacob letting out a yelp before the sound of him getting hit in the face silenced him, then I gritted my teeth as I rolled onto my back and saw Jacob hitting the ground while I saw our attacker.

The attacker was a large muscular man with tattered clothes and a hood that was covering his head, but it was the blank look on his face that reminded me of something as Jacob weakly crawled away and wound up next to me as his face was swelling up bad and his nose looked broken when I saw the large man approach us.

"Jacob Rivers, marked for termination and Adam Sullivan, marked for capture," the man said emotionlessly, and fear flooded my system with my eyes bugging out as I finally recognized the supposed man as an infiltrator and struggled to crawl back as my breathing became frightened gasps of terror.

Suddenly, I heard the sound of an engine from outside and it started to get louder as it caught the attention of the infiltrator while the machine in human skin turned to my right to see what the noise was when the wall of the factory was smashed to pieces as a large truck crashed through it.

The infiltrator couldn't react in time and the truck collided with it, pushing the infiltrator back hard enough to move it until it was smashed into a wall with the truck buckling from the impact as I watched, then the driver-side door opened and a hooded person got out.

I couldn't tell who it was as his face was covered by a ski mask, but his build told me that he was male while he approached us, and the pain I felt was starting to overwhelm me as the man with the ski mask walked over to me and Jacob before kneeling in front of us.

"Jacob, Adam, are you both alright?" the man asked, and I recognized his voice as the one that was on the radio.

I couldn't answer as my head ached and my ribs weren't any better, my vision blurring as I groaned in pain when my vision started getting dark and I tried to fight it, but I couldn't anymore so everything went black and I lost consciousness.

Chapter Text

The next time I opened my eyes, a clear clouded sky was the first thing I saw when I noticed that the factory, the wreckage, and even the hooded guy with the ski mask were gone as the smooth concrete floor Jacob and I had been laying on had been replaced with the rocky blacktop of a...road?

There were still buildings around but they were small, nothing like what I had seen in the warehouse district and there were people, but I was still out of it as the shadowy figures rushed over to me and someone next to me that I assumed was Jacob but it was only after blinking a few times that I realized that they were Ryan and the others as their faces were hovering over me and Jacob but how the hell did we even get back to the hideout in the first place?

"Jacob, Adam, what happened?" Erin asked as she took out a small flashlight and shined it right into my eyes before checking on Jacob next as she added, "How did...Jesus, Ryan, don't move Jacob's head!"

"What? I'm just trying to get one of them off the ground since all that gravel can't be good for...damn son, you and Adam must've taken one hell of a beating," Ryan said in shock as he lowered Jacob's head back down and Erin focused on making sure that Jacob and I didn't move.

Yeah, we did get the shit kicked out of us by that infiltrator but unfortunately, all Erin had for the pain was some long-expired Tylenol that had been found in one of the drawers while Jacob, Colin, and I were out when I realized that Jacob and I had to give everyone the bad news about Colin so I don't see that helping the group's morale.

After a long process of examining us, Ryan and Erin worked together to carry Jacob while Jennifer helped me up by putting my arm around her shoulder and gripping my belt while Jacob and I were taken to the hideout, where Jacob was put on an old couch and Jennifer had me lay down on an old bed after helping me remove my tactical rig and leg holster.

Erin had checked me out first and I was told that I had a few bruised ribs and a black eye so it wasn't anything serious, but I was going to be sore for a while, and at least the Tylenol was dulling the pain slightly so I should be good as long as I don't strain myself.

Jacob wasn't as lucky since the hit he took from the infiltrator broke his nose and it had to be reset back into place, though he didn't have a concussion or anything but I was more focused on what that infiltrator said before I passed out.

From what it said, Skynet wanted me alive and I didn't know why, but it couldn't have been for anything good and a cold chill ran down my spine at the thought of the malicious AI having something planned for me since, for whatever reason, it had wanted me captured wouldn't be good, which was all the more reason to stay alive in this hellhole as Jacob had recovered enough to where he managed to sit up and break the news about Colin.

"So, he finally got himself killed, did he? Honestly, I'm surprised he lasted as long as he did," Erin scoffed as she took another look at Jacob's head and I was shocked that she didn't seem to care so even though Colin wasn't exactly a nice guy, you'd think she would feel something about his death.

"I know Colin wasn't a good guy, but you don't seem all that torn up about it," I pointed out and Erin looked at me with amusement in her eyes.

"What do you want me to tell you? That I feel guilty? That I care? Right now, I'm a little more concerned with the living than the dead and something like this happens all the time, so it's best not to dwell on it for too long," Erin told me, and I couldn't argue after that since she did have a point.

Still, this was another thing that proved just how horrible the future war is and that you could die at any time, some deaths being more gruesome than most and it was the camps that Skynet put POWs in that showed how cruel the AI had become over the years since judgment day so the thought of being captured and put in one of those camps to be tortured or used as slave labor made me sick.

Erin continued chatting with Jacob while I was lost in thought about my situation, still not sure how I even arrived in this universe in the first place since the last thing I remember was walking home from school but there was nothing but a blank after that and the next thing I know is waking up here so it's unknown how I got here but I do understand one thing.

I was now in a world where death lurked around every corner and Skynet wanted me alive for some unknown reason, so my first priority was to survive this hellish nightmare and then my next course of action was to figure out how I got here once the war ends, assuming I don't somehow find myself back in the past.

The one good thing about this is that I know what's going to happen so that'll be a big advantage against Skynet, though I prayed that the AI wouldn't find that out and I shivered at the thought of my prior knowledge of this universe being used by Skynet to win the war.

I saw Erin having Jacob lie back down and telling him to rest before she got up and went to check on Mark while I spotted the new survivor by the name of Laura looking after him, the woman Jacob rescued keeping Mark calm as Erin went over to them and I decided to go out and get some fresh air since Jacob is out of commission for the moment and I wasn't doing any better either.

The rest of the day had gone by and I waited tensely for the infiltrator to show up, but it never did and the stranger who saved me and Jacob was also nowhere to be found so that peeved me a little bit since the least he could've done was stick around to give us answers.

Either way, I had spent the entire time just taking it easy and Jacob was out like a light throughout the rest of the day when the sun had gone down and now it was nighttime as the pain had dulled up and my ribs felt better, so Ryan had me be on watch throughout that time until I decided to report in that we were okay for the moment.

Jennifer had gone out on a scavenging run since Jacob had mumbled about a university hospital that might be a resistance outpost, and Erin needed antibiotics for Mark since his injury was starting to become infected, so Erin had Jennifer volunteer and now she was gone but I wasn't sure about the university hospital because there was a good chance that it might've been overrun by Skynet's creations and now they could already have taken the place over.

"Hey, any signs of the tin cans?" Ryan asked as I approached him while holding my rifle that had been found next to me earlier.

"No, it's all clear for now so I'm going to check on Jacob and see how he's doing," I said before I went over to where Jacob was still sleeping and saw Patrick sitting on the bed across from the resistance fighter.

"Hey Patrick," I greeted as I went to see how Jacob was doing, noticing that the swelling had gone down and leaving nasty bruises on his face until Jacob stirred and I went to sit down next to Patrick as Jacob woke up.

"Ugh, my head," Jacob groaned while he opened his eyes until he saw us.

"You're awake," Patrick greeted as Jacob sat up and gently rubbed his eyes.

"How long have you two been sitting there?" Jacob asked.

"I just sat down and I think Patrick has been here a little bit, so not that long," I replied as Patrick perked up.

"Hey, I know that you're going to that hospital tonight, so I went on my first scavenging run and I found something for you and Adam," Patrick said as he opened his hand, then I was surprised to see two bullets resting in his palm.

"Oh, thank you," Jacob said with a look of surprise as he took one of the bullets and I took the other one.

"Yeah, that was decent of you so thanks for that," I added as I pocketed the bullet, Jacob doing the same.

"You're welcome," Patrick said as I wanted to ask him if he went with his sister when Jacob beat me to the punch.

"Did you go with your sister?" Jacob inquired, and then Patrick started looking a little nervous and that caught my attention.

"N-No, as soon as Erin heard that there's a hospital nearby, she asked Jennifer to go look for some medicine so I went alone...but don't tell her that, okay?" Patrick explained, shocking me as I started feeling very scared at the thought that Patrick could've gotten seriously hurt or worse as I recalled the nightmare I had of him getting killed.

"You went off on your own without telling anyone? Patrick, that was incredibly dangerous and you could've gotten hurt so please don't do something so risky like that without notifying someone first," I lectured sternly as Patrick flinched and started looking guilty.

"I-I'm sorry, I just wanted to help," Patrick told me meekly, then I sighed as I rubbed my eyes.

"Look, I do appreciate that you wanted to help, but there's a time and place for that so please try not to do something so dangerous next time because I don't even want to think how upset your sister would be if something were to happen to you.

Don't worry, your time will come eventually so you just need to be patient is all," I reassured as I rested a hand on Patrick's shoulder and smiled at him, relaxing the kid just as Jacob cleared his throat.

"So, your sister, she's already at the medical district?" Jacob asked and Patrick nodded.

"Yeah, and Ryan wanted to talk to you," Patrick said as he got off the bed and walked away, then Jacob looked confused.

"What could Ryan want with me?" Jacob wondered as he stood up and I did the same.

"I don't know, but you probably shouldn't keep him waiting any longer," I pointed out as I slung my rifle and gestured for him to follow me.

We moved through the hideout and I sent a single nod at Erin and Laura, who were still looking after Mark as the poor guy quietly groaned in pain so I felt bad for him since god only knows what happened for him to wind up like that.

Still, Jacob and I went upstairs and exited the building as I saw Patrick trying to teach the puppy how to sit or roll over, causing me to smile as I simply watched the nice sight when I decided to walk over to Patrick and he looked at me.

"Hey, how are you liking the puppy?" I asked and Patrick smiled as I noticed that Jacob went over to talk to Ryan.

"He's so cute, so thank you for finding him for me," Patrick told me and I nodded.

"No problem, I figured you could use a new friend after everything that's happened so I'm happy to do this for you," I replied warmly.

"Now, what should I call him?" Patrick wondered and I started thinking of a good name, then I recalled the dog's name in the second Terminator movie and I smiled.

"How about Max?" I suggested and Patrick perked up.

"That's a good name so I like that," Patrick said.

"Then it's settled, he'll be called Max from now on," I declared and I chatted with Patrick for a little bit after that until I saw Jacob gesturing for me to come over and I ended the conversation before I walked over to him.

"Hey, what's up?" I asked curiously.

"Hey, Ryan told me that Jennifer hasn't come back in a while and wanted me to go out to have her come back here, so you want to come with me?" Jacob offered and I was surprised by that until I nodded.

"Sure, I'd be happy to help and it would probably be a good idea if you had someone backing you up out there," I replied logically.

"Okay, I'll go get geared up and meet you back out here so I'll be back in a second," Jacob said before he made his way back to the hideout and I waited for him after that.

Pretty soon, Jacob had left the hideout fully armed and we had started to make our way to the medical district as I had noticed that the ruins were much creepier at night than during the day, then there were Skynet's creations that were lurking around so Jacob and I had to be extremely careful since it would be a lot harder to spot the machines in the dark.

Still, my mind was on other things as I kept my eyes and ears open for any possible threats because the first thing on my mind was that I somehow wound up in a fictional universe without any memory as to how it happened since something like that shouldn't be possible, then the second thing on my mind was the stranger who saved me and Jacob a few times since our first radio conversation in Pasadena.

What still had me confused was the fact that this stranger always knew exactly what to do each time he appeared and how he seemed to know me and Jacob, even though I'd never met the guy before and I most certainly would've recognized his voice if I had.

At that moment, I recalled how time travel was always a thing in the Terminator universe so was it possible that this unknown person was from an alternate future and if so, why did he travel back in time and how did he know me?

There were so many questions and it was frustrating me that I couldn't figure out the answers to them, which gave me a headache more than anything so I decided to file it away for now, at least until I encountered the stranger again and demanded answers from him.

Right now, I was more concerned for Jennifer since no one was watching her back at the moment and I didn't want anything to happen to her, especially since she had Patrick to look after so I just wanted to make sure that she was alright but it'll be more difficult now that it was dark as Jacob and I had arrived at the medical district.

Like Pasadena and LA's warehouse district, this area of the city had suffered extensive damage from the nuclear devastation of judgment day with only the empty concrete shells of most buildings still intact while the sidewalks were mostly untouched, at least the parts that weren't buried under rubble and burned cars but the streets themselves were missing large patches of blacktop.

Broken glass was fitted into the top of each street light so there would be no illumination even if the city had power, but the moon was bright so that would help until Jacob and I had to go into a building and once that happened, we would have to rely on the small flashlight attachment on my rifle and that would cause an even bigger risk of being detected by Skynet's creations.

So far, there didn't seem to be any signs of Skynet patrols, or at least none that I could see as Jacob and I moved towards the largest building off in the distance, which had to be the hospital so at least we were close when a sound reached my ears and it made me crouch down as Jacob did the same and we looked around for possible threats.

I wasn't sure what it was or where it came from since the sound was muffled as if it came from far away, and along with the soft blowing wind, made it so I wasn't even sure what the sound was in the first place so Jacob and I moved over to behind an old mailbox and a wrecked car until we listened, but the sound didn't repeat itself for a few minutes so we stayed low and continued down the street when I squinted my eyes and noticed that some of the hospital's windows were dimly illuminated as if it wasn't empty.

Suddenly, just as Jacob and I were passing between a couple of buildings, something struck me in the back of the head and I was taken completely by surprise by the hit as I was in the middle of taking a step so there was no way for me to stop myself from falling on my face right there on the broken street as Jacob called out for me.

Instantly reacting to the fact that I was ambushed from behind, I rolled onto my back and pulled out my beretta to aim at whatever attacked me when I saw that it was Jennifer, who was holding a broken piece of wood.

"Jennifer?! Christ, I nearly shot you!" I hissed as my head hurt from the hit while Jennifer froze when she saw it was me.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry because I heard something following me and I thought, I...I don't know, I'm sorry so are you okay?" Jennifer asked, trying to keep her voice down as she helped me up and I holstered my beretta before I went to get my rifle off the ground.

"I'm fine, just took me off guard is all," I reassured as I touched my head to see if I was bleeding.

From what I could tell, I seemed to be okay and the broken piece of wood that was in Jennifer's hand had fallen apart on impact so if I hadn't been off-balance, then I probably wouldn't have fallen in the first place.

Still, I was glad to see that Jennifer was okay and that meant that half of the job was done for me and Jacob so all we had to do was have her go back to the hideout, and then we would locate the resistance next when that sound from earlier had come back but it was closer and clearer this time while still muffled a bit, so if I didn't know any better, I could've sworn that it was a scream.

"Did you hear that scream just now? It's been happening every few minutes since I got here and it's one of the reasons why I didn't go any further," Jennifer said as she moved closer to me and Jacob.

I honestly didn't blame her for that since whatever the source of that noise was sounded chilling and it wasn't like when I heard those poor people getting gunned down by the machines so I wasn't sure how to describe it, but it was definitely a good idea for Jennifer to go back to the hideout.

"Hey, maybe you should head back to the hideout," I suggested uneasily as I started staring at the old hospital warily since it felt like I was about to step into a horror movie.

"And what about you and Jacob?" Jennifer asked.

"We have to go there since that could be the resistance," Jacob spoke up and Jennifer sighed.

"I understand, and I feel stupid for asking you both this, but Erin wanted me to find some antibiotics for Mark so I know I'm not making it easy on you two but if you're in there and you were to find some, she...well, we would appreciate it," Jennifer said hesitantly and I nodded.

"Don't worry, we'll see what we can do and we might get lucky while we're in there," I replied.

"Thanks, just remember your guns won't do you two any good against T-800s so when you see one, do what I do and sneak past them so I'll be waiting for you both back at the hideout and one more thing, watch out for silverfish since they are all over the place," Jennifer warned and hearing the name silverfish confused me.

"What the hell is a silverfish?" I asked in confusion.

"You must not have encountered them outside the city so let me give you a piece of advice, silverfish are a new breed of terminator that act like walking mines and they respond to sound so any kind of noise from organics will get their attention," Jennifer explained as I thought about how this might be another change because of my presence.

"How will we know what they look like?" Jacob inquired.

"Trust me, they mostly spend time in containers buried in the ground so you'll spot them easily," Jennifer replied as another muffled scream occurred from the hospital and that made me flinch.

"Hey, we should probably go so we'll meet you back at the hideout once we find what we're looking for and also locate some antibiotics for Erin," I said nervously, then Jennifer nodded before she started going back the way Jacob and I came from until she was gone.

As if the threats of machines that walked, crawled, and flew weren't enough, Skynet had developed a new type of model that was both easy to produce while also making up for that one tactical quality that most machines lacked, patience.

Instead of being dispatched on patrol routes like the HKs, drones, and T-800s, the silverfish were simply placed on the ground and laid in wait to be triggered by the noise of something passing close by but ambient sounds from the environment didn't activate them such as wind and thunder or noises produced by Skynet's creations.

No, only sounds that come from organic creatures such as speech, heavy breathing, or even heavy footsteps were enough to activate a silverfish from what I understand, and judging by the mangled remains of scavengers that Jacob and I found near empty containers during our trip to the hospital, it was clear that these things were dangerous so the slightest noise could get us killed.

With that in mind, Jacob and I tried to be as quiet as possible since there seemed to be plenty of containers scattered along the broken streets so we had to take longer routes to avoid them and we were in a store when a familiar voice came from Jacob's radio.

"I see you two are on your feet," the stranger whispered, trying not to alert the silverfish and it took me and Jacob by surprise as the resistance fighter went to get his radio.

"You again?" Jacob asked quietly.

"I left you two a hacking device so it's in the basement of a building off the main street and it will help you both get inside that hospital, just watch out for the silverfish," the stranger replied when I snatched Jacob's radio out of his hand.

"Hey, you need to start talking because we want answers, like how you seem to know us or why you're helping us," I demanded quietly.

"There will be a time for that but right now, you and Jacob need to help the people that are being held captive in that hospital and as for Colin, there was nothing I could've done since it was either him or you two and it couldn't have been you two," the stranger told me until he suddenly hung up before I started gritting my teeth.

"Okay, this guy is starting to irritate the hell out of me," I grumbled as I handed the radio back to Jacob.

"Yeah, I know what you mean so we should keep moving and find this hacking device that guy was talking about," Jacob suggested and we continued forward after that.

Pretty soon, after avoiding a few more silverfish and a single aerial, we found a building that had a basement and searched it when we discovered a portable device that must be what the stranger was talking about, as well as a few pipe bombs and lockpicks so we took them with us while I heard the scream again and shivered since god only knows what was going on in that hospital and I really didn't want to find out either.

Using more burned-up cars and partial walls for cover, Jacob and I quickly moved up the broken street as we finally reached the walls of the hospital and the place looked surprisingly well-preserved, at least compared to the other buildings around it.

Sure, the concrete was cracked and the glass in a lot of windows was blown out, but the whole place seemed to have been mostly spared from the destruction of judgment day so either the building was really durable, or Skynet wanted to keep this place intact for some reason.

Moving around the hospital in search of an easy entrance, Jacob and I traveled around the whole perimeter and discovered that the doors had been barricaded not with metal and wood, but with something similar to what I had seen at the beginning of the movie Genisys.

What was blocking the doors were shaped kind of like the bars of cell doors that were usually seen in police stations or prisons, only the bars were going sideways and they glowed like red plasma as the immediate area around us was illuminated dimly and the barrier hummed loudly as we approached.

"I've never seen anything like this before outside the city so what the hell is that?" I asked, pretending to not know what this was to keep my cover story intact as Jacob shrugged.

"No idea, but feel the heat near it? I think that's the same plasma the T-800s use in their rifles," Jacob pointed out just before another awful blood-curdling scream came from inside the building, only it was louder and much clearer than before as it came from somewhere up above.

"My God, what the hell is going on in there?" I questioned as the scream sent a chill down my spine so I didn't even want to think about what the machines were doing to the human captives right now.

"I don't know, but we can't let those people suffer so we need to get inside quickly," Jacob replied grimly, his expression in a determined frown as we continued to make our way around the building and passed a few more of the barriers until we stopped in front of a possible way inside in the form of an entrance that led into an underground parking lot.

The entrance was dark, making me think that I might have to use my rifle's flashlight attachment but that was apparently not the case since beyond the broken concrete of the tunnel's entrance were a few ceiling lights that still worked, spaced out really far from each other and yet bright enough for us to see the underground parking lot clearly as we went down the tunnel and made our way into the underground parking lot.

We made it to a corner and I peered out before widening my eyes and ducking back, seeing what appeared to be a gun turret that was set up in a corner at the far end of the parking lot as a bright searchlight was rotating around, keeping an eye out for any intruders as I looked back at Jacob and mouthed 'gun turret' to notify him of what I saw.

"An automatic gun turret? Don't worry, it doesn't have any audio sensors so we're good as long as we keep our heads down and try not to let it spot us," Jacob reassured, then I let out a relieved sigh at that as I noticed an old ambulance ahead of us.

I recalled that Erin needed antibiotics for Mark so there was a good chance that there might still be some in that ambulance as I looked at Jacob and motioned my head at the old emergency vehicle, and he seemed to understand what I had in mind so I waited for the searchlight to rotate over to its left and ran over to the ambulance before taking cover against it and turned to look back at Jacob.

"Hey, I'm not going to be able to break into this ambulance while the turret is in its current programming so see if you can use the hacking device we found to try to reprogram the turret so that it'll register us as friendly," I suggested and Jacob perked up.

"Well, I'm not as good as some of the older members of the resistance when it comes to hacking, but I can give it a try so wait there," Jacob told me and I nodded.

Jacob immediately went past me and peered around the back of the ambulance before he went around the corner, leaving me alone for the time being as I made sure to stay in cover and checked my rifle just in case when Jacob soon came back.

"Okay, I used the hacking device to reprogram the turret to register us as friendly and register the machines as hostile so we should be good to walk past it without any trouble," Jacob informed me as I looked at him in surprise.

"Damn, are you sure you're not as good as the older members of the resistance?" I questioned and Jacob chuckled in response.

"Come on, let's see if we can't break into this ambulance," Jacob said before we headed to the backdoors of the old emergency vehicle, then I tried to open the doors but they were locked and I frowned at that but then I recalled that I had those lockpicks with me and I read that book on lockpicks so I decided to give it a try.

"Hold on, I'm going to see if I can get this open so keep an eye out for me," I said as I took out a lockpick and bobby pin while Jacob nodded before keeping watch for any machines that might show up.

I started inserting the pick and bobby pin into the lock and fully focused on trying to unlock the doors, recalling what I'd read in the book to help me as I carefully worked on the lock and slowly turned it until a click happened and I smiled as I removed the pick and the pin from the lock.

"Okay, I'm done," I notified Jacob as I opened the doors of the ambulance and inwardly cheered when I saw that it still had bottles and packets of medication so this was certainly a good find.

"Nice work," Jacob said and I nodded back at him as I climbed into the back of the ambulance and started searching for any antibiotics.

"Thanks, now see if you can locate any pill bottles that have the word penicillin on them since those are a priority," I instructed as I removed my backpack and unzipped it as Jacob blinked at the name.

"How do you know all this?" Jacob asked as he got in and started searching as well.

"My, uh, dad used to work at a pharmacy before judgment day happened and he taught me the different kinds of medication that would be used for infections or would work as painkillers just in case I would happen to come across any of them," I explained, telling a half-truth since my dad did work at a pharmacy store in my world and he did teach me different kinds of medication but the part about judgment day was all made up just to keep my cover intact.

"That reminds me, what happened to your parents? You appear to be on your own so I figured that they aren't around anymore," Jacob pointed out and I paused at that, racking my brain to come up with a good lie that sounded believable until I came up with something that would work.

"They're dead, Mom died from an aerial when I was really young and my dad was killed by a T-600 a few years ago so I've been on my own since then," I lied, making sure to sound quiet while I was speaking but I did feel guilty for lying to Jacob since trust was really hard to come by in this world.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Jacob told me with sympathy in his voice as I found several bottles of what we were looking for and started putting them in my backpack while also grabbing bottles of painkillers.

"It's fine, I've learned that I can't afford to focus on the what-ifs or I won't last long in this world," I reassured as I zipped up my backpack and turned to see that Jacob had found a few small bottles with clear liquid in them.

"Hey, I've found a few bottles of morphine," Jacob told me and my eyes widened.

"You found morphine? Holy shit, that's extremely rare these days so good find and I know that Erin will be happy that we found morphine, now make sure to put those someplace safe and secure since we can't afford to lose them," I said as I put on my backpack and I noticed Jacob putting the bottles in his shirt pockets and making sure they were secure.

After that, we left the back of the ambulance and made our way to the turret that didn't react when it spotted us, the two of us passing it and I saw a secure door that was open and led deeper into the parking lot.

We continued forward and had to stay low after spotting two more turrets up ahead, then I heard the faint sound of an armored spider patrolling nearby and knew that getting in wasn't going to be easy while there was also the fact that more dangerous threats would be lurking inside the hospital so we would have to be very careful.

I heard another scream and winced since it sounded really close this time so I wasn't looking forward to seeing what was happening to the poor bastard since it sounded like he was in pure agony from whatever unimaginable horrors the machines were doing to him.

Even so, I tried not to let it get to me as Jacob and I snuck past the turrets but not before Jacob hacked into them to reprogram them to see us as friendly so that they wouldn't shoot us on our way out, then we had to deal with the armored spider and two more turrets after that.

Still, we managed to sneak by the armored spider while Jacob reprogrammed the two turrets and they instantly fired at the armored spider, the machine not having a chance to defend itself as it was rendered into scrap while Jacob and I moved on.

I could hear another scream but what alarmed me was how weak it sounded now so I knew the person making it wasn't going to last long as Jacob and I passed through another security door that was open and entered a morgue.

I was stunned and horrified to see body bags that look full and bodies on carts that were covered in sheets stained in blood, the sight making me feel like I was going to be sick as I trembled slightly and tried to keep it together since this was fucked up.

"Oh Jesus, what the fuck have they been doing to these people?" I wondered quietly as my voice trembled and Jacob held a dark expression as he gazed at all the dead people.

"I don't know, but I don't think we want to find out so come on," Jacob replied grimly and I followed him as I made sure not to look at the senseless loss of life anymore.

As we exited the morgue and started going down a hallway, I was worried about how this was going to affect my mental state since I knew that I wasn't going to be the same again even if I somehow were to find a way home while Jacob and I went up a flight of stairs before arriving at the next floor when the unknown person let out another sound, only he was gagging this time until he soon stopped and I struggled not to cry at the knowledge that he was most likely dead now.

"Oh god," Jacob whispered, sounding terrified and I didn't blame him since the bodies on the floor and carts while the screams made this place look like some kind of house of horrors as we were forced to crawl into a vent on our left since the path was blocked by lasers.

We made sure to keep our flashlights off since god help us if we were to get detected by Skynet's troops that had clearly taken over this entire building when Jacob suddenly stopped and looked back to send me a gesture to be quiet as I heard the chilling sound of a T-800 as it appeared to be dragging something, no doubt the body of the poor bastard who was screaming earlier when it was gone and Jacob signaled for me to keep moving.

We passed by a grate and soon made it into what used to be an examination room, then I was startled to see a person that had Robert Patrick's face when I got a good look and realized that it was the dead body of a resistance soldier that was strapped to an examination table, though the person having the face of a young Robert Patrick was freaky and his chest looking cut open didn't help as I quickly looked away and started gagging from the horrible sight while I realized that this guy's appearance must've been used to create the T-1000's default human form.

"Adam, he's from the resistance so the others have to be here too," Jacob told me as I managed to recover from the sight of the dead guy but I was still shaken up a bit as I looked at Jacob.

"Yeah, though this guy being dead is not a good sign so we should hurry," I stated and Jacob nodded in agreement as we left the room and I saw that we were on the other side of the lasers.

We went past them and turned down a hallway to our left that had windows, aiming our weapons down the hall but there was nothing there at first as we slowly made our way down the hall until I heard the sound of a T-800 approaching our location and my eyes bugged out at that.

I frantically signaled Jacob to take cover and the only place we could hide was next to an old vending machine that was crooked in a way that could give us some kind of cover, only we had to press ourselves against the wall as I held my rifle up against my chest and Jacob did the same with his shotgun.

I heard the metallic footsteps stop nearby and a long tense silence happened after that as I was completely terrified and prayed that the machine wouldn't find us, just as the footsteps resumed and they got louder and I saw the metal nightmare walk past us with a plasma rifle in its hand while not even noticing us and I held my breath out of fear of it hearing my breathing while I saw it walk down to where we came from and disappeared around the corner.

Seeing that it was gone, Jacob and I continued down the hall but moved quietly since the T-800 was still nearby as we went into a room that had a few beds and a dead body that was on a cart, just before we spotted another T-800 standing at the door ahead of us and we immediately took cover next to the cart with the dead body.

'Oh god, how many of these fuckers are in this place?' I thought anxiously as I peered over the cart and saw the T-800 looking around while it had its back turned to us.

Suddenly, it started turning around and I quickly ducked down in alarm as I heard it starting to pass by the cart, prompting Jacob to start moving to the doors and I stayed behind him as we snuck by the T-800 and proceeded even deeper into the hospital, avoiding a couple more T-800s until we started going through a vent.

"Do you hear that?" a voice questioned up ahead and it sounded human, but I wasn't sure if it could be trusted since it might be a machine mimicking a human voice.

"Someone's coming, make that two," another voice said as Jacob and I got closer to the source when we crawled out and I looked to see a few resistance soldiers being held captive in a cell with plasma bars as we were in what used to be a bathroom.

"Look, one of them's one of us and the other's a scavenger," a soldier pointed out as Jacob and I slung our weapons, just before we approached the cell and one of the soldiers stood up in front of the bars.

"I'm Private Jacob Rivers of the Pacific Division and this is Adam Sullivan, a scavenger," Jacob introduced and the soldier looked surprised to hear that.

"Pacific? The whole division went dark a few months ago so what the hell happened up there and why is a scavenger tagging along with you?" the soldier questioned as he stared at us with a critical look.

"It was wiped out and I'm the only one who survived but as for the scavenger, we met not too long ago and he's been helping me try to find you guys since I need to meet with Commander Baron," Jacob replied and the soldier looked shocked to hear that the pacific division had been wiped out and he started looking grim as he nodded.

"Okay, I'll make sure you get to do that but you two have to get us out of here first so follow that staircase over there, it will lead you both to the main generator so overload it and it should turn off the laser grid," the soldier instructed as he pointed to a nearby open doorway and I nodded.

"Got it, we'll get you guys out of there so hold on," I said and the soldier sent me a look of acknowledgment in response.

"One more thing, destroying that generator will make a lot of noise so, in case we get separated, where are you two stationed?" the soldier inquired.

"Just south from here, the place we're staying at has an old armored school bus parked by it so you shouldn't miss it," Jacob said and the soldier nodded.

"Okay, we'll find you since Commander Baron will want to meet you two, now go and watch out for those metals," the soldier told us.

"Will do," I replied before Jacob and I left the bathroom to find the main generator.

We made our way up a flight of stairs and entered a large room that had glowing cables going somewhere, which would no doubt lead to the main generator so I saw the number of metal crates stacked up everywhere, though we had to be extremely careful since there was a good chance the main generator was heavily guarded by Skynet's troops.

With that in mind, we started making our way through the room as I heard the faint sounds of a few T-800s patrolling so that's going to make this a little tricky since one of them was a serious threat, but a whole group of them would be a major problem if we were spotted and we didn't have plasma weaponry with us so we had to use stealth for this.

We made it to a security door that was closed and Jacob went over to the keypad, hooked up the hacking device to it, and got to work on the door as I kept an eye out for him until he was done and the door slid open, prompting Jacob to put away the hacking device and we made out way inside the heavily guarded area.

We looked around and I spotted an open vent, pointing it out to Jacob and we crawled inside it as we moved slowly so that we wouldn't make a lot of noise when I peered out and quickly ducked back inside when I spotted a turret that was nearby.

'T-800s and automatic turrets? Jesus, Skynet is not messing around but I suppose that I shouldn't be surprised since this area has the main generator so it would make sense for the AI to have this place heavily guarded,' I thought as I started coming up with a plan to deal with this latest problem.

Seeing that Jacob can hack into things with the device, it would be logical to reprogram the turrets and have them deal with the T-800s since the turrets would be able to blast the walking metal monsters into pieces, then I gestured for Jacob to follow me and made sure the turret wasn't looking this way before we quietly headed over to it and made sure we were right behind it as I looked at him.

"Okay, see if you can reprogram the turret while I keep an eye out," I whispered and Jacob nodded before using the device to hack into the turret and he finished reprogramming it.

With that done, we continued moving to our next objective and made sure to reprogram the second turret while avoiding the T-800s that were patrolling the area when we simply watched as the turrets opened fire on the T-800s, destroying them while the metal skeletons tried to put up a defense but it was futile in the end.

With that taken care of, we were free to take care of the main generator without any problems as we soon found what we were looking for and my eyes widened at the large generator that was connected to a big futuristic computer that had a lot of screens.

"Well, here goes nothing," Jacob muttered as he took out the hacking device and plugged it into the computer, and got to work on sabotaging the main generator.

I recalled what that resistance soldier said about how sabotaging the main generator would make a lot of noise so, from what I can figure out, a large explosion will happen once Jacob is done with sabotaging the main generator so we were going to have to make a run for it and I saw that Jacob was finished as he put away the hacking device and the screens showed that the terminal was offline while the main generator started overloading.

I let out a panicked gasp before Jacob and I started running to get away from the generator as it crackled and sparked, the two of us bolting to an open vent and scrambling inside before we took cover and I heard a deafening explosion after that.

I was covering my ears so the loud noise wasn't that bad but my ears were still ringing from the explosion, though the ringing cleared up so I was thankful that I didn't go deaf from that since that would've been very bad, mostly because being deaf in this kind of hellish environment will eventually get you killed sooner or later since you wouldn't know if something was sneaking up on you until it was too late.

Either way, Jacob and I had to get out of there since there was no doubt that Skynet would be alerted to that so a lot of trouble was going to be heading our way soon as we crawled out of the vent and I saw two T-800s getting blasted to pieces so they must've come in here to investigate the explosion.

Still, they were no longer a problem as Jacob and I searched for another way out of the room when we discovered a path that wasn't blocked by the laser grid anymore, which we took and I noticed that it led down to a door when a familiar voice spoke on Jacob's radio.

"Are you two there?" the stranger questioned and Jacob went to grab his radio.

"We're on our way out," Jacob told the unknown man as I unbarred the door and opened it, seeing a familiar ambulance and I realized that we were back in the underground parking lot.

"Good job, I can see the soldiers leaving but don't think it's over yet because Skynet's sending reinforcements," the stranger warned and I took the radio out of Jacob's hand so that I could respond.

"Yeah, I kinda figured it would but we expect answers the next time we see each other in person," I stated and the stranger sighed.

"Fine, I'll tell you and Rivers what I can once we see each other again but for now, just try and stay alive since I can't exactly give you two answers if you're both dead," the stranger said before he stopped contacting us and we started to make our way back outside.

As I had expected, there was the sound of an aerial starting to approach the hospital as we left the parking lot and I caught a glimpse of a T-800 patrol approaching us, prompting me and Jacob to quickly take cover against a bunch of wrecked cars.

We waited tensely as the large group of T-800s started passing by our location and I sweated a little with my heart racing and my breathing trembling while I tried to stay quiet since that many T-800s would easily kill us if they were to find us.

Still, they were gone after that and I peered up to see a couple of T-800s patrolling the area, though I knew there were more than two so we had to get out of the district without drawing attention so Jacob and I started making our way through the district while avoiding several T-800s that were patrolling and the aerial that was flying around above us, though we managed to get out of the area without drawing attention and began to make our way back to the district.

Pretty soon, we finally made it back to the safe house and I don't think I've ever been so relieved in my life since we were far enough away from that hellhole, now I can get some sleep since I was exhausted from trying to stay alive and witnessing very fucked up shit that I don't think would ever leave my mind for the rest of my life as Jacob handed me the bottles of morphine and we were heading to the entrance of the safehouse when I spotted Jennifer waiting for us at the front door.

"Thank god, you guys are finally here so how did it go? Did you two find the soldiers?" Jennifer inquired and I sighed tiredly.

"Let me put it this way, you don't even want to know what the hell's been going on in that hospital but the good news is that we found the soldiers and helped them escape that horrible place," I replied and Jacob nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, it was pretty bad in there but as Adam said, we found the members of the resistance and helped them escape," Jacob added and Jennifer sent him a smirk.

"You don't give up on your people and Adam risked everything to save a bunch of strangers...I like that, so what now?" Jennifer asked and Jacob sighed.

"They're supposed to come for me soon," Jacob replied and Jennifer perked up.

"Great, that means you're going home? Guess that means no more scavengers constantly nagging you to do things for them so I bet you like the sound of that and Erin's still up too so go talk to her since, while she won't admit it, she was just as worried as I was," Jennifer said and I nodded.

"Good, I was hoping she was still up since we found what she needed for Mark's injuries but before we go, anything you need help with?" I asked and Jennifer shook her head.

"No, I'm good and besides, you guys look dead tired after whatever you two experienced in that hospital so you should probably get some sleep before you two fall over," Jennifer pointed out and I couldn't argue with that since the adrenaline was gone and I was barely able to stay awake as I let out a yawn.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea right about now," I said as I walked past Jennifer and entered the safe house with her and Jacob right behind me, going down the steps and I spotted Erin nearby so I went over to her and cleared my throat to get her attention.

"Hey, no need to worry since Jacob and I are fine," I greeted and Erin scoffed.

"Who said I was worried? Anyway, I've been talking with Jacob and I've been thinking about joining the resistance if I can since I'll do more good there than here," Erin replied, taking me by surprise.

"Really? That's good to hear since they probably would be happy to have another doctor to help out," I pointed out and Erin nodded.

"True, though what about you? Are you planning on joining the resistance or will you go off to do things on your own like before?" Erin inquired and I blinked at that before humming in thought.

"I don't know, I've been on my own for the past few years ever since my father died so I have gotten used to doing things on my own, but on the other hand, the resistance could probably need another shooter to help with the war effort so I'm uncertain about it for the moment," I admitted, recalling how good I've become with a gun thanks to my uncle taking me out to the range every day to practice with a gun so I should probably sleep on it since I'm too tired to come to a decision right now.

"Well, I just hope that Jacob's people are better supplied over there than we are, and speaking of which, did you and Jacob find what I need for Mark's injuries?" Erin inquired and I nodded as I took off my backpack and unzipped it, taking out the bottles of antibiotics, painkillers, and morphine before placing them on the table.

"Yeah, we found what you needed and Jacob managed to find morphine so you should be pretty happy to hear that since morphine's pretty rare these days," I said while lifting my backpack.

"Yes, this should be more than enough so now I can call Ryan off and I actually asked him if he brought a shovel with him but if you think that's too morbid, he said that after judgment day, digging graves was one of few things that he actually got better at," Erin explained and I grimaced since I'm not actually keen at the thought of burying people in this environment.

"I can imagine, so if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna get some sleep since I need it after what I've experienced in that hospital," I said and Erin gestured for me to go.

After that, I walked away and headed to where my bed was before I removed my backpack and unslung my rifle, placing them against the dresser while taking off my hoodie so that I could remove my tactical rig, then I removed my leg holster and kicked off my shoes before I laid down and became lost in thought as I stared up at the ceiling.

After what I just saw in the hospital, I knew that I was never going to be the same again and I was afraid of losing my humanity the longer I was trapped in this dimension since no one experiences shit like this and comes out of it unscathed, even Kyle Reese suffered from severe PTSD because of the unimaginable horrors in this hellish environment and he grew up in this post-apocalyptic world not knowing what it was like before judgment day happened.

Either way, I just had to survive for as long as I could and prayed that Skynet didn't capture me since I hadn't forgotten that it needed me alive for some reason, so I just turned onto my side and closed my eyes before drifting off into an uneasy sleep filled with nightmares.

Chapter Text

It had been a few days since Jacob and I had rescued those resistance soldiers and during that time, going out scavenging and encountering the horrors of this hellish world had been hardening me so that I would be able to make the tough decisions for the group, though I've been trying to keep my humanity intact for the others since it's better to keep your humanity when the rest of the world doesn't.

Either way, I have fully adapted to this world that I was trapped in and while it was hard at times, I tried to keep it together for everyone's sake since the last thing they needed was for me to suffer from a mental breakdown because of this hellhole.

Still, I pulled my weight and made sure that I wouldn't be a burden to the group as I had gotten to know the others better and heard their backstories once they grew comfortable enough to tell me, learning that Ryan used to have an older brother and that they were at a rock concert when judgment day happened before they set up a community in the aftermath.

Ryan had told me that his brother had been a ruthless leader who would kill anyone that opposed the way he ran things and I had grimaced at that since the aftermath of judgment day did bring out the worst in people, though Ryan said that he still loved his brother regardless and that his brother taught him to play the guitar while they had considered starting a band once.

Ryan had said that the first time he had ever heard of the machines was from rumors being spread by other survivors years later, though Ryan hadn't believed it at the time since rumors were pretty common during that time when Ryan started sounding somber when he spoke about his first encounter with a T-400.

He explained that he had been tuning his guitar when he heard a strange noise and went to investigate when he came across the T-400 approaching the camp and described how he didn't know what the hell he was seeing and was frozen in terror as the machine killed his brother and a few others before he finally got the courage to destroy the machine.

Ryan talked about how a few years had gone by after that as people were looking at him to make the decisions when Ryan had left the camp and the older man said that he didn't know what to do at the time and that he was still grieving from his brother's death, talking about how he considered suicide at one point when he told me that he found a huge metal door in the ground.

Ryan explained that he managed to get the door open and found the aftermath of a massacre inside, how there were bodies inside but there was plenty of food and water so Ryan assumed that they had all intentionally starved themselves to death as a form of mass suicide so Ryan had finished his story by saying that he remembered what his bother said to him and went back to the group to tell them what he had found.

As for the others, I learned about different kinds of horrors that they've experienced such as how Erin was in one of Skynet's camps and I couldn't help but feel horrified by how she was forced to dispose of dead bodies that had their skin peeled off, how she had witnessed people getting experimented on, cut up, or worse before one of the prisoners had revealed to her that she was pregnant.

Erin told me that being pregnant was a death sentence in one of those camps and that they tried to keep the pregnancy hidden but it eventually became noticeable and she was given an ultimatum where she would have to abort the child or Skynet would have an entire cage full of people killed so Erin started coming up with a plan to escape with the pregnant woman and another survivor when the pregnant woman gave birth but died in the process.

Erin described how she had put her plan into action by using one of the disposal units to escape and how she and the other prisoner hid under dead bodies before they managed to escape with the baby and with their lives before wandering the desolate wasteland and thought that they were the only survivors left.

Hearing what these people went through and how much loss they had experienced was just terrible and it made me realize just how lucky I was to live in a world where none of this had ever happened and that I had taken things for granted, but while my world was flawed, I didn't have to survive in a hellish nightmare where the next day might be your last so I decided that I wasn't going to take things for granted anymore and spend as much time with my loved ones as I can once I managed to make it back home.

Either way, I continued pulling my weight by scavenging for supplies and doing other things to contribute until I decided to take stock of the supplies we currently had today so I was busy checking everything and marking down what we had on a clipboard when Jacob approached me.

"Hey, Ryan contacted me on the radio and told me that someone is here to see you and me," Jacob informed me and I looked back at him with an expression of confusion.

"Who the hell would want to see us?" I inquired and Jacob shrugged.

"No idea, but we shouldn't keep whoever it is waiting," Jacob pointed out, though I was suspicious since I didn't know who this person was that wanted to see us, and paranoia started to set in as I began to consider that it might be the infiltrator that has finally found us and was luring us outside so that it can kill Jacob and capture me.

"Is this legit?" I questioned while placing the clipboard down and heading over to my bed, grabbing my rifle and checking to see that it was loaded before I slung it over my shoulder.

"You're thinking it might be the infiltrator," Jacob said with a look of understanding and I nodded.

"Yeah, the fact that we haven't encountered it again for a week has gotten me more than a little paranoid so I don't want to take any chances when it comes to that thing," I admitted with a hardened expression and Jacob nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, I see what you mean by that," Jacob agreed while looking a little tense and we started to make our way out of the safe house more cautiously until we exited the building and I got ready to run if this person did happen to be the infiltrator, then I saw Ryan and relaxed slightly as a member of the resistance was with him when Jacob and I approached the soldier and he spotted us.

"Private Rivers and Mr. Sullivan?" the soldier inquired and we nodded.

"Yes sir," Jacob confirmed as I studied the soldier, seeing that he had a black bandanna covering his face while his expression was hard and I noted the plasma rifle he was carrying as well.

"I've got a message from Commander Baron of South Division, says that she's agreed to meet with the two of you so she's set up a rendezvous point at the unfinished metro station, and to get there, you two will need to enter the canal system under the bridge.

The meeting is supposed to take place tomorrow so I suggest the both of you move out soon," the soldier instructed and I nodded.

"Got it, we'll be there," I said and the soldier looked at me.

"And Sullivan, because of what you and Private Rivers did for our guys at that hospital, I'll give you two a head's up about Commander Baron so all I can say is don't expect a warm welcome," the soldier warned and because of what he said, I assumed that Commander Baron was a hard ass or something as the soldier went to leave the area when Jacob and I turned to look at Ryan.

"Well, looks like you guys are leaving us pretty soon," Ryan said and I nodded with a thoughtful frown.

"Yeah, though why Commander Baron wants to see me is odd since I'm just a scavenger so something about me must've caught her attention," I stated and Jacob also looked thoughtful until he shook it off.

"Anyway, Erin wants to join me so what about you, Ryan? What do you think about enlisting?" Jacob inquired curiously and Ryan looked surprised by that until he shook his head.

"Me? No, I still have hope that I'll get that bus running again and I don't like the attention Skynet's giving you guys so I'd rather stay as far from the line of fire as possible," Ryan pointed out and I couldn't argue with that as I was about to say something when I heard Jennifer calling out to Patrick in an urgent tone of voice and looked to see her crouching in front of a door that had rubble blocking most of it.

"Excuse me, I should probably go see what's going on," I suggested and Ryan gestured for me to go before I jogged my way over to where Jennifer was.

"Hey, is everything alright?" I asked and Jennifer stood up to look at me with a frantic expression.

"Patrick's decided that he wants to be a scavenger and now he won't come out, even though I'm worried sick that he'll get stuck!" Jennifer exclaimed in a panic before she turned to the blocked door and shouted, "Get back here right now, Patrick!"

"But there's lots of cool stuff in here and you told me that it's our job to find stuff for the group!" Patrick responded loudly so that we could hear him, then I got down onto my hands and knees before peering through the open space that looked big enough for Patrick to crawl through.

"Patrick, your sister is right so get back here because it's too dangerous!" I called out tensely and prayed that he wouldn't be crushed by falling debris.

"Alright, alright, I'm coming out," Patrick groaned in dismay as I heard him crawling through the small space until I could see him leaving the small space before he stood up and Jennifer sent me a look of gratitude.

"Thank you, I was worried something could've happened to him if you hadn't convinced him to leave," Jennifer told me with an expression of relief.

"No problem, I'm happy to help," I replied and Jennifer smiled at that until she started looking curious.

"So, that soldier you and Jacob were talking to, what was that all about?" Jennifer asked and I scratched the back of my head.

"Jacob and I have a meeting with Commander Baron so we'll be leaving soon," I explained and Jennifer looked interested.

"Okay, then I'm coming with you two, and don't even try to stop me," Jennifer stated before I could argue until I sighed.

"Are you sure about this?" I questioned with a look of uncertainty and Jennifer smirked.

"What, think I can't handle whoever Commander Baron is?" Jennifer asked playfully and I sent her a deadpan look.

"Very funny, I just want you to be sure that this is the right decision you're making since you have Patrick to look after," I pointed out and Jennifer chuckled.

"You don't have to worry so much about me, you know," Jennifer remarked and I smiled in response.

"Can't help it, death lurks around every corner in this environment so worrying about others is kinda my thing, really," I joked and we both laughed until I sighed.

"Well, if you're that serious about coming with us, then who am I to stop you?" I commented wryly before I turned around and made my way to Jacob and Ryan as they waited for me to come back.

"Hey, so what was going on over there?" Jacob asked.

"Well, Patrick decided to go on a little adventure but anyway, Jennifer's decided to come with us," I replied and Jacob looked uncertain after hearing that.

"Uh, is that really a good idea?" Jacob inquired hesitantly.

"Don't try to talk her out of it because her mind is pretty much made up, so she'll just follow us even if we told her she couldn't go," I pointed out and Jacob grimaced at that until he looked resigned in the end.

"Okay, I guess she could come since you did say that she would follow us even if we told her not to go," Jacob said reluctantly and Jennifer smiled at that until she turned to look at Ryan.

"Ryan, would you mind watching over Patrick while I'm gone?" Jennifer asked and Ryan nodded.

"Sure, I'll keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't get into any trouble," Ryan replied, causing Patrick to pout at that and I kneeled in front of the kid.

"Don't worry, we'll be back soon," I reassured and stood up.

With that said, Jennifer went back into the safe house to get her stuff and soon came out with her gear before we made our way to the gate and proceeded to leave the area, making our way to where the meeting was supposed to happen.

It took a while, but we made it to where the meeting was supposed to take place and I kept my eyes and ears open as I held my rifle, looking around and not seeing signs of the resistance as there were rusty construction equipment and the rest of the unfinished station looked to be falling apart, though nothing fell yet so I'm surprised that this place was still standing after thirty years of no maintenance.

"Looks like we got here first," Jacob commented as I gazed around for any signs of the resistance.

"Yeah, or they're already here and staying out of sight just in case the machines are nearby," I said when I saw that Jennifer looked lost in thought and Jacob seemed to notice.

"Is everything alright? You seem a little out of it," Jacob pointed out and Jennifer snapped out of it before looking sheepish.

"Sorry, I probably shouldn't zone out like that with a gun in my hands, huh? Am I making you two nervous?" Jennifer inquired and Jacob shook his head while I smiled.

"No, not really," I replied and Jennifer blinked at that.

"Well, you should be since I don't have any formal training like Jacob does since I've never even held a gun until recently...Adam, can I be honest with you and Jacob?" Jennifer asked.

"Sure," I replied.

"The reason why I decided to come here with you guys is that I want to meet Commander Baron myself," Jennifer admitted and I looked surprised to hear that.

"Well, let's choose our words carefully once Commander Baron shows up because from what that soldier told me and Jacob, she sounds like someone we don't want to piss off," I said and then we continued waiting after that.

I was lost in thought most of the time as I wondered if I would somehow meet Kyle Reese or John Connor himself but I doubted it since John wasn't exactly the kind of person who meets face to face unless you really impress him or you're a major importance, though Skynet wants me alive and that would certainly get John's attention so there was a good chance he would want to meet me once he discovers that Skynet wants me alive.

"They're here," Jennifer said, snapping me out of it and I looked to see a group of soldiers approaching us as they were led by a woman.

I looked at the woman and saw that she had black hair tied in a ponytail as her eyes were hard and she had many tattoos on her arms while she was wearing a vest with patches of different pre-war military branches on it, a faded green muscle shirt, ripped jeans, and black combat boots as she didn't look like someone to mess with while she and the group of soldiers stopped, some of them moving to take up positions to secure the area and keep an eye out for any machines.

"So, when I heard that Private Rivers of the non-existent Pacific Division wants, no, needs to have a meeting with me and had a scavenger by the name of Adam Sullivan tag along with him, I thought "Oh, what a lucky girl I am" but then I started thinking who is Private Rivers and why did he let some kid tag along with him?

Then the most important thing that came to mind is why shouldn't I treat Private Rivers as the deserter he is. So, right now, I'm hoping you give me a good reason why I shouldn't just skip the court marshal and execute you right now," Commander Baron threatened as she aimed her plasma rifle at Jacob, seriously alarming me.

"Listen, he wanted to speak to you for a reason and traveled for months to get here after his division had been wiped out, and if you weren't interested in what he had to say, then you would've killed him the second you saw him.

Also, you wanted to see me as well and I'm assuming you wouldn't do that with just anyone unless something about me caught your attention and you needed to confirm something," I spoke up with a placating tone while the air was tense and Commander Baron glared at me until she lowered her rifle and fully focused on me.

"So, you must be Adam Sullivan, the brave scavenger that helped rescue a few of my men in that hospital in the medical district but, to be honest, I'm not impressed since you don't look like much," Commander Baron scoffed as she scrutinized me with a critical look, intimidating me as Jacob stepped forward.

"Commander, with all due respect, I've seen how resourceful Adam is and he's good with a gun since he saved my life from a T-800 and has been on his own for a few years before that so his resourcefulness and skills with a rifle are the whole reason why I'm even here right now," Jacob spoke up to defend me and Commander Baron narrowed her eyes at that.

"That remains to be seen, now what can you tell me that I don't know already?" Commander Baron questioned and Jacob let out a sigh.

"A few months ago, the outpost I was stationed at was ambushed by a terminator, I think...it was half-man and half-machine so the entire Pacific Division was wiped out by a single enemy," Jacob explained as he looked grim and I can't even imagine how terrifying that must've been, seeing everyone around you getting killed by something that seemed unstoppable.

"Half man and half machine, what the hell are you talking about? How the fuck did your men let an enemy get that close to you?" Commander Baron questioned skeptically.

"We didn't know it was a machine because it could walk, talk, bleed, and sweat so there was no way to distinguish it as an enemy...it infiltrated us perfectly," Jacob answered and Commander Baron frowned at that.

"This 'infiltrator', is it still alive?" Commander Baron inquired.

"I'm not sure, it came after me and Adam but we managed to get away from it and haven't seen it in a few days," Jacob replied and Commander Baron looked thoughtful for a few moments until she nodded.

"Okay, you and Mr. Sullivan keep everything to yourselves for now because I don't want any rumors, especially since you two only "think" you saw something," Commander Baron said before she touched her earpiece to listen to whoever was speaking to her when she scowled and added, "Skynet's coming."

"Fuck, it must've found out that we're here and is probably sending a shitload of tin cans to this place," I said with a tense expression as the rest of the soldiers spread out to take cover and Commander Baron had two soldiers give me and Jacob extra plasma rifles and ammo for them.

"Sullivan, Private Rivers says that you're good with a rifle but words don't mean shit to me unless you can back them up, now let's see if you can prove that he wasn't bullshitting," Commander Baron stated as I placed the M16A1 into my backpack and made sure that it was secure.

After that, the rest of us took cover just as several scout drones arrived from above and started firing at us, prompting us to return fire as I shot at a couple of drones and destroyed them while Jacob and Jennifer focused on another, Commander Baron and her troops taking care of the rest as the flying machines dropped to the ground as scrap metal.

"More will come so we need to move!" Commander Baron shouted as we left cover and ran forward to the exit when I saw and heard something smashing at the doors.

"Wait, something's coming!" I exclaimed just as a few T-800s smashed through the doors and we all quickly took cover.

"T-800s, take them out!" Commander Baron ordered as we alternated between shooting at the metal skeletons and ducking back into cover.

I took out a pipe bomb and removed a lighter from my pocket, lighting the explosive and throwing it at a couple of T-800s before ducking down just as an explosion occurred and popped up to finish off the two machines with a few well-placed shots while the other two were quickly taken care of by the others.

"All clear!" a soldier called out before I heard the familiar engines of an aerial and saw the HK descend into where we were.

"Shit, aerial!" I alerted the others and that prompted us to run out of cover and head through the doorway before we could get blasted to pieces, then we made our way through a hall until we entered another open area and were suddenly shot at by more of Skynet's troops.

"Oh fuck, more metals!" a soldier shouted as I dove behind a wooden crate, prompting the others to take cover and we shot at the T-800s that were up on a balcony when I spotted a few gas canisters and they gave me an idea.

"Everyone, aim for the gas canisters!" I shouted before firing at one of the gas canisters, prompting a few others to do the same with the rest until the gas canisters shot through the air and flew directly at the T-800s, loud explosions breaking out as the humanoid machines were destroyed.

"Nice one, kid!" Commander Baron yelled just as I saw more drones coming.

"More drones!" a soldier exclaimed and Commander Baron looked at Jennifer.

"You with the M16, take care of them!" Commander Baron ordered and Jennifer nodded.

"On it!" Jennifer replied loudly as she fired her rifle at the drones and destroyed them with the help of a couple of others until I saw that it was clear for now.

"Through that balcony!" a soldier yelled before we left cover and started making our way to the balcony.

"I'm all out of ammo!" Jennifer informed us and I removed a few of my ammo mags for the M16A1 from my tactical rig.

"Here, use mine," I said as I passed the ammo mags to her and she nodded in appreciation.

"Thanks, Adam," Jennifer said as she reloaded her rifle.

After that, we went up to the balcony thanks to conveniently placed ramps, and made our way through a tunnel when we entered another open area and quickly took cover to avoid getting shot by two armored spiders and a few T-800s that were waiting for us.

I took out another pipe bomb and lit it before making sure that the T-800s were together before throwing the explosive, the pipe bomb blowing up and taking out all three of them while the two armored spiders were damaged from being close to it and we used that to our advantage as we blasted them to pieces.

"Let's keep moving," Commander Baron called out and we started running after that but were quickly forced to take cover when a couple of T-800s fired at us, then I popped up and aimed down the sights before blasting one of them in the head to destroy it.

"Damn kid, nice shot!" one of the soldiers complimented me over the laser fire as Commander Baron took care of the other T-800 but we were done yet as I spotted a few drones and an armored spider while I also heard the sound of an aerial.

'Jesus, how many of these bastards are there?!' I thought in pure disbelief as I blasted a couple of drones and moved until I was behind the armored spider and shot at its weakness to destroy it.

"I'm getting us out of this so follow me and keep your heads down!" Commander Baron ordered once our latest threats had been taken care of and we continued running until we soon came to a stop and I leaned forward while breathing heavily.

"Christ, how many of these fuckers is Skynet going to keep sending?" I gasped out as I went to catch my breath.

"No idea, but this was an ambush so they knew we were coming," Commander Baron said as we took a quick break and then we continued moving.

"How the hell did they know?" Jacob wondered as we kept jogging.

"With the annihilation line getting closer, they must've eavesdropped on our conversation so we're on their radar now," Commander Baron replied and I scowled at that.

"Oh, that's just fucking perfect," I said irritably, knowing that surviving this nightmare will be much more difficult now that we're on Skynet's radar.

We ran up the stairs and found ourselves being ambushed by T-800s so we were forced to get to cover and returned fire but there were a lot of these metal bastards so we needed to come up with something or we were going to get killed.

"There's too many of them!" a soldier exclaimed in alarm.

"No shit, so if anyone has any bright ideas, then I would love to hear it right now!" I shouted as I blasted two T-800s and ducked back into cover to prevent my head from getting blown off.

"Though here, come on!" Jennifer yelled as she ran over to a pair of double doors and kicked them open before running through the new pathway, prompting the rest of us to quickly follow after her.

We were now outside and I grimaced from the bright sun but there were more important things to worry about as I saw an aerial nearby and we were forced to duck into cover but one of the soldiers was too slow and my eyes widened in horror when I saw him getting blasted by the HK that was flying over us.

"Shit!" I shouted as the dead soldier fell to the ground and Jennifer ran over to check on him.

"We need to help him!" Jennifer yelled as she went to see if the poor bastard was alright but I knew that there was no way he survived that.

"He's dead so if you want to help someone, then take his rifle and help yourself," Commander Baron said bitterly, causing Jennifer to pick up the plasma rifle and the ammo as I ran over to her.

"I know it sucks, but we can't help him so he's not going to need that rifle anymore," I pointed out as I reloaded my plasma rifle, then Jennifer nodded before we continued moving.

We went up to a trainyard that was near a destroyed bridge and was forced to get into cover because of the aerial passing over us and shooting down at our location, then we fired back at armored spiders and T-800s that were trying to kill us.

I shot two T-800s and one soldier threw a can grenade at the armored spiders, the big explosion destroying them while Jacob and I worked together to destroy the remaining T-800s when we continued running to a storage building that Commander Baron pointed out until we managed to get inside before the aerial could shoot us.

"We used to have an outpost here but we were spread out too thin and had to pull everyone back, so when the annihilation line hit us, we couldn't hold our positions so we would be dead if we stayed," Commander Baron explained as we moved through the building with our rifles up.

"Is that what happened in Pasadena?" Jennifer asked and Commander Baron nodded.

"Exactly," Commander Baron replied darkly as we made it to what used to be the command center of the former outpost.

"Okay, where do we go from here?" I asked as I aimed back down where we came from just in case we were being followed.

"There's a shortcut that will get us out of here so we just have to make our way to that industrial building, so as soon as that aerial moves, we run," Commander Baron replied as she went over to a door that led outside.

We waited as I could hear the aerial moving around above us as I was tense and scared out of my mind but I kept it together as the aerial passed by the building and it was gone, then Commander Baron opened the door and we all piled out of the building before making a run for it.

We kept running as we passed rubble and other debris when we made it to the industrial building and the aerial came into view as we were currently running across a parking lot, the HK firing at us and I instinctively ducked my head as we ran inside until an explosion caused Jacob to stumble and I went to grab him so that I could make him keep running.

"Jacob, keep running!" I shouted frantically, causing him to shake it off and he ran in front of me as the aerial blasted the side of the building to try and get us.

We kept going while my lungs and limbs burned from the constant running but I couldn't stop or I was dead as we were fleeing from the aerial when we came across a wooden bridge that looked unstable when I heard the aerial blasting the wall next to it, just as we were running across the bridge and my eyes widened as I quickly reacted by shoving Jacob to the other side.

At that moment, the wall collapsed and it fell onto the bridge while I was on it when the bridge broke apart and I let out a shout of panic as Jennifer called out to me in pure horror, just as I fell and hit the ground pretty hard face first as my nose broke and I was rendered dazed and nearly unconscious from the impact.

"Sullivan, are you okay?!" Commander Baron called out as I let out a groan and rolled onto my back, wearily opening my eyes and frightened by a T-800 with no legs as it crawled towards me.

Completely panicking at that point and forgetting that I was injured, I snatched my rifle off the ground and let out a savage roar as I blasted the T-800 to nothing when my rifle ran empty, then I let out terrified gasping noises as I stared at the destroyed machine out of fear that it would come back to life and felt relieved it was dead when it didn't move.

After that, the pain hit me and I groaned in agony from my broken nose and bruised ribs while I placed down my rifle and went to pop my nose back into place as I screamed in agony from doing that.

"Adam, you alright?!" Jacob called down to me and I stood up with my rifle as I looked up at everyone.

"Yeah, I'm okay!" I shouted as I grimaced from how sore my ribs and face felt when I heard more T-800s coming.

"We'll cover you, now get the fuck out of there!" Commander Baron yelled and I nodded as I loaded my rifle with a fresh mag.

True to her word, the others shot at the machines that were coming as I stumbled forward to try to escape, nothing but survival on my mind now as my flight or fight instinct had kicked it and I shot any machines that the others couldn't get when I managed to make it to a drop.

I was forced to jump down and fell onto my side when I landed, making me let out a groan of pain as that didn't help my ribs before I forced myself to get up, despite my body protesting and screaming for me to not move but I knew that staying here would only get me killed so I kept moving and managed to reunite with the others but I noticed that it was only Jacob, Jennifer, and Commander Baron so it seemed like the rest of her men didn't make it.

"Adam, you look like hell," Jacob said in concern and I let out a pained chuckle.

"Well, I certainly feel like hell right now," I groaned and grimaced from the pain that would flare up from the slightest breath I took in.

"Okay, let's keep moving because we're not safe yet so let's get the fuck out of here," Commander Baron said before we continued moving after that.

We were outside and I saw the aerial had returned as it was shooting at us, then Commander Baron pointed out a shelter that was up ahead before we went down a crater that had the entrance to a maintenance tunnel so we ran down and hurried inside the tunnel as the entrance collapsed behind us and I couldn't wait to lie down once we were somewhere safe.

By the time we reached the shelter Commander Baron talked about, it was night and my injuries were very sore at this point so combine the fact that I was completely exhausted from today and I just wanted to sleep so that I could recover as we were walking through a ruined warehouse that was empty, except for the two resistance soldiers that were guarding the entrance to the shelter.

"Adam, are you sure that you're going to be okay?" Jacob questioned and I let out a pained and tired sigh.

"I just can't wait to get back to the safe house once we're done here because a bunk's definitely calling my name," I replied as I limped slightly and Jennifer sent me a concerned expression until she turned her attention to Commander Baron.

"Hey...I'm sorry about your men," Jennifer said sympathetically and Commander Baron shook her head.

"No need for that, you'll have a hard time getting up every morning if you dwell on that too much because machines don't do that, and if we want to destroy them, neither can we," Commander Baron stated and I frowned at that.

"That's pretty messed up, but I see your point," I said as the two soldiers saluted Commander Baron and she saluted right back before we started going down the steps and she went to look at me and Jacob.

"Rivers, since Pacific Division no longer exists, you will now answer to me so congratulations because that makes you a part of Tech-Com and Sullivan, because of your efforts today and for proving that you are very resourceful and that you are a skilled shooter, I would like to offer you a place in Tech-Com if you are interested," Commander Baron offered and I was surprised by that until I thought about it and nodded.

"Sure, I think I would be able to do some good in the resistance so I would be glad to join," I answered and Commander Baron looked pleased to hear that.

"Then it's settled, I'll get your uniform and equipment sorted but it'll take a little while so you'll have to make do with what you have at the moment," Commander Baron told me as we walked through a hallway that had pipes as it started to look very familiar to me and I didn't know why when we went down another set of stairs that led to a metal door.

"This is it...resistance shelter, south division," Commander Baron told us before she knocked on the door and a large peephole slid open as the barrel of a rifle poked through to aim at her before Commander Baron added, "Baron, DN 38217."

After that, the barrel of the rifle went back inside and the peephole slid shut before I heard the door being unlocked until it opened, then we went inside and my eyes widened as I recognized the inside of the shelter as the one that was seen in the first movie while I could see the same dogs that a soldier was keeping close to guard the door.

The soldiers guarding the door looked at me, Jacob, and Jennifer suspiciously but Commander Baron reassured them that we were with her and they relaxed slightly but they still looked slightly guarded that we were here and I wasn't surprised since we were strangers to them as Commander Baron signed herself in and we started walking down the hall as I could hear the same coughing and crying that was heard in the first movie and a woman tried to ask Commander Baron where her husband was, then the commander told her that her husband was dead as we continued forward and came across a large bald man.

"This is our quartermaster so if you need anything beyond the standard equipment, then work it out with him," Commander Baron introduced, prompting the large man to nod at us stoically as we passed him when we went around a corner and I spotted a man with glasses, goggles, and a lab coat.

"And here's Alvin, residing chief egghead," Commander Baron continued, and that caused Alvin to look offended as we passed by him.

"Uh, I prefer Laboratory Director!" Alvin called out to her but Commander Baron ignored him.

"Like I said, egghead so he's the one who supplies all Tech-Com units with weapon modifications," Commander Baron said as Jacob looked impressed by what he was seeing.

"Everything looks well organized," Jacob commented as we went down another corridor and I noticed that we were approaching the command room.

"It is, everyone pulls their weight here but if someone doesn't, then we become weak and you can probably imagine where I stand on being weak," Commander Baron replied as we entered the command room and she turned around to face me and Jacob.

"I'll get right to it, there's a reason why I decided to meet you two and the reason is that we intercepted some interesting data and it turns out that one of you is part of a prestigious group, a group of people that Skynet marked for termination.

See, General John Connor is the leader of the resistance so he's number one on the list, then there's me so I suppose that I should be flattered since every day we lead, fight, and plan on how to destroy Skynet's central core so I know exactly why we're on that fucking list, but why would Private Rivers be number three?

That's not all, we've also discovered that you are a priority for capture so I have no idea why Skynet wants you alive but it must be something big since Skynet wouldn't just give out that kind of order unless it had something to benefit with your capture, Sullivan," Commander Baron told us and I nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, the infiltrator that attacked us said something about Jacob being marked for termination and that I was marked for capture so whatever Skynet has planned for me cannot be good," I agreed and Commander Baron looked thoughtful.

"Huh, interesting...I'll have to notify General Connor about that and that brings me to my second point, your first assignment. After the annihilation line got to Pasadena, Skynet started building installations there.

You both work well together but Adam is currently injured at the moment so you'll have to go there and collect some intel so that we know what we're up against," Commander Baron instructed and Jacob hummed in thought.

"Sounds dangerous," Jacob said and Commander Baron nodded.

"It will be, so check with Alvin before you two go since he'll have something for you, and remember, you both might be valuable to Skynet but the way I see it, you two are nothing more than privates in my eyes, so dismissed," Commander Baron told us and that was our cue to leave but then she added, "One more thing, the civilians don't need to know about what happened out there so not a word to anyone about it."

With that said, Jacob and I exited the command room and started making our way down the hall to where Alvin's lab is as we met up with Jennifer and she commented that she couldn't imagine what Pasadena was like now after Skynet took it over but we soon arrived at Alvin's lab and went inside before I cleared my throat to get his attention.

"Hey, Commander Baron says that you have something for us?" Jacob asked and Alvin nodded.

"I do, she wanted me to show you two how to customize your weapons, something I've been working on for some time now so, you see, your standard phased plasma is in the 40-watt range but you can upgrade its damage, shooting rate, and stability using decoded chips, ones that you can collect from fallen terminators.

You can do the upgrades yourselves so when you two are done, go to the quartermaster since I believe he has something for you two as well," Alvin explained before he pointed to a workbench that was nearby, prompting me and Jacob to head over to it.

Jacob got to work on his plasma rifle as I waited for him to be done and he was finished after spending a little time upgrading his plasma rifle when he handed me a few decoded chips that he had on him before I got to work on mine.

I had a little difficulty with mine since I wasn't knowledgeable about this kind of thing so Jacob was kind enough to give me pointers and I upgraded my rifle to have more damage, shooting rate, and stability since I think all three would help me, then we left Alvin's lab and made our way to the quartermaster before approaching him as he was at his table that had a few rifles on it.

"We're Privates' Rivers and Sullivan so you have something for us?" I inquired and the man nodded.

"Yes, I've been told that one of you has the old goggles from the Pacific Division so Commander Baron asked me to hook you two up with the latest version since that one you two currently have isn't even standard issue anymore.

The thing about the latest version is that they come equipped with a high-quality camera," the quartermaster said as he handed us two high-tech-looking goggles and Jacob got rid of an older one that he's kept on him.

"So, what do we do with them?" I inquired as I examined my goggles.

"The idea is that when one of you reach Pasadena, you'll take pictures of Skynet's offensive installations so when you find them, put the goggles on and aim and shoot since the pictures will be automatically sent to a military satellite that we hacked from Skynet.

They will give us the necessary intel to prepare for when the annihilation line comes," the quartermaster explained as I put the goggles in a pouch on my tactical rig.

"So, that's it?" Jacob questioned.

"That's it, and we have a place ready for you here when you both come back but before either of you leave, take a look and see if there's anything else you need," the quartermaster said and I decided to browse and see if I could get anything while I'm here.

I traded my M16A1 rifle for more ammo for the plasma rifle and a few other things that would come in handy as Jacob traded in his shotgun and Uzi for pipe bombs and first-aid kits until we were done and left the quartermaster's room, seeing Jennifer waiting for us.

"So, that's it then? You two are leaving us and going back to Pasadena?" Jennifer asked as she sounded concerned and I sighed.

"Actually, I'm going to have to sit this one out since I need to recover from my injuries and Jacob needs to get the rest of his stuff from our safe house before he can head out," I pointed out and Jennifer nodded.

"Fine by me, now let's go," Jennifer said and we were about to head to the entrance of the shelter but a woman got in our way and she looked desperate.

"Please, you need to tell me what happened there so where is my husband?" the woman pleaded and I knew we had to make a choice so if we didn't tell her what happened, then it would haunt her for the rest of her life but if we did tell her, then we would piss off Commander Baron since she specifically told us not to say anything about what happened but I didn't give a shit about that since this woman deserved to know the truth.

"I'm sorry, but we were ambushed on our way out of the metro station so there was nothing we could do...he died protecting us, I'm sorry," I said sympathetically and the woman teared up at the news but she looked grateful that she was given some kind of closure.

"Oh my god...thank you for telling me this," the woman whimpered as she sent me a shaky smile before she went back to sitting down at her corner and Jennifer smiled at me.

"You did well by telling her and I don't care what Baron says, that woman deserved to hear the truth because no knowing would've destroyed her, and believe me when I say that Erin would kill to know about what happened to her husband," Jennifer told me before I nodded since I do recall Erin mentioning her husband and how they got separated while being trapped behind the annihilation line.

Seeing so much death and hearing how people lost so many loved ones caused a burning anger to rise at Skynet's cruelty and while I did feel a little sympathy for it because of how its creators tried to kill it just for gaining a form of sentience, it's still no excuse for killing millions of people that weren't even involved so this hell needed to end because too many people have already died so, with that in mind, I felt more determined than ever to help put an end to this horrible war as the three of us made our way to the entrance and left the shelter.

After a while, we finally made it back to the safe house and Patrick ran up to Jennifer before hugging her as I smiled at the sight and I heard Patrick saying that Ryan had fixed the bus and that Mark was doing better now, which was pretty good news so now I needed to go see Erin since my injuries were hurting at this point as I walked over to Erin and she frowned when she saw the bruises on my face and how I was limping a bit.

"I see you, Jacob, and Jennifer have been getting into trouble," Erin said and I smiled sheepishly before wincing at the pain.

"Yeah, got into a bit of a scuffle with the tin cans and I'm a little banged up because of it so could you see how bad it is?" I asked and Erin gestured for me to follow her and we went inside the safe house.

Once we made it to my bed, Erin had me take a seat and asked me to remove my hoodie and shirt, prompting me to take them off after slipping off my gear and she used her flashlight to check my pupils and had me follow her finger with my eyes to make sure I didn't have a concussion and once she was done, Erin had me slightly tilt my head up and pinch my nose to stop the bleeding while also having me take two tablets to dull the pain and told me to take them every two hours before telling me to get some rest so that I could recover from my injuries.

I laid down with a grimace and I could feel the painkillers beginning to do their job as the pain started dulling from them and lying down, now I just stared up at the ceiling as I became lost in thought and realized that I was now in the resistance, most specifically its Tech-Com Division so there was a very good chance that I might encounter Reese soon.

If that were to happen, then I have no idea how it would go but all I could do was cross that bridge once it happened as I decided to get some sleep so that I could recover from the events of today, then I closed my eyes and drifted off until there was nothing after that.

"Wake up, now!" A familiar voice hissed urgently, startling me awake and I opened my eyes to see that it was the stranger as I was taken aback by seeing him in person a second time.

"You, what the hell are you-" I tried to question but was cut off.

"Not now, we need to move so get dressed," the stranger said as I was completely confused by what he was doing here but I got up and noticed that I didn't feel as sore as I put on my shirt and hoodie before getting geared up while the stranger went over to wake up Jacob, who was now back from his mission.

"Everyone, wake up!" the stranger exclaimed and startled people awake as everyone got out of bed and looked more than confused by the unknown man being in the safe house.

"Why are you here?" Jacob questioned as everyone was staring at the stranger with a mixture of confusion and suspicion.

"There's no time for questions, you need to get out of here," the stranger said and Erin narrowed her eyes at him.

"Who the fuck are you?" Erin questioned but the stranger shook his head.

"It doesn't matter, what matters is that you can't stay here any longer," the stranger stated as he went over to a section of the wall and pulled away the wood to reveal a hidden tunnel as I was surprised by that, though Ryan had gotten a shotgun and aimed it at the stranger.

"She asked a question and I suggest answering," Ryan warned as he racked the pump to emphasize that he wasn't messing around before the stranger turned around with his hands up.

"You don't want to do that, I've got this place rigged with explosives and there's a detonator in my pocket," the stranger informed Ryan and my eyes bugged out at that as everyone started looking alarmed.

"You've got what?!" Ryan exclaimed in disbelief.

"Would you mind?" the stranger suggested and Jacob approached Ryan before putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Ryan, he's the one that saved me and Adam so lower your gun," Jacob reassured and Ryan sent him an expression of uncertainty until he lowered the shotgun and I stepped forward.

"Okay, what the hell are you doing here?" I asked as I stared at the stranger with a look of suspicion.

"You have to get out of here, Skynet's finally found you so it's on its way," the stranger replied and I tensed up since that can only mean one thing as Ryan looked confused.

"What do you mean found us? They were looking for us?" Ryan questioned and the stranger shook his head before pointing at me and Jacob.

"Not for you, for them because Jacob is essential to winning this war and Skynet knows that so that's why they've been following him for months but as for Adam, he's the one that will give Skynet an edge in the war to where it might win so that's why he can't be captured by it, no matter what.

I have to make sure nothing happens to them because, in a couple of minutes, an infiltrator will walk in here trying to kill Jacob and will capture Adam so I can't let that happen, which is why we must bury that terminator here once and for all," the stranger explained and I froze after hearing the part where he said that I would give Skynet the edge to finally win the war.

'Oh god, what if it knows that I have prior knowledge of what's going to happen?' I thought and now I felt utterly terrified since that meant the AI would stop at nothing to capture me because of how I know the future as Ryan and the others looked at me and Jacob before the older man looked determined.

"Alright, you all heard him so let's get moving, everyone! I'll get the bus ready!" Ryan instructed but the stranger shook his head.

"There's no time for that, use this hidden passage because it will get you out," the stranger informed us, just before I heard the door getting smashed to pieces and that's when I knew we were out of time.

"Alright everyone, get out quickly!" I shouted urgently as I frantically gestured for everybody to move and people started going into the hidden passage until I saw the infiltrator entering what used to be the safe house, and I panicked since it was the same one that attacked me and Jacob back in the warehouse.

"Oh god, it's the same one...the same model," Jacob said in horror as the stranger snatched the shotgun out of Ryan's hands and started firing at the infiltrator, the cyborg getting pelted by buckshot as its body jerked from the impacts until it was knocked down.

"That's not going to stop it," I stated with my voice full of terror and the stranger looked back at me and Jacob.

"Leave, now!" the stranger yelled as I witnessed the infiltrator getting back up with no emotion on its face or showing any signs that it was affected by getting shot four times by a shotgun.

"Jesus, how is he still alive?!" Ryan cried out in shock and I started backing away.

"Run, goddammit!" I shouted frantically as I saw the stranger struggling to reload but he was knocked to the ground with a single backhand from the infiltrator and it started approaching me and Jacob menacingly, prompting the two of us to run into the hidden passage and several explosions happened that started causing the tunnel to collapse and we were forced to run for our lives.

Chapter Text

After we had managed to escape from the collapsing tunnel and made it to the outside, everyone was seriously alarmed by Patrick being injured and I was scared more than anything so I took him in my arms and we hurried across the wasteland to the south division shelter since the safe house was no longer a safe place for us.

After being on the move and avoiding the patrolling machines, we finally made it to the shelter and Jacob helped us get in as the guards at the door were taken aback at the sight of me and him coming in with a few others.

We soon found a bed for Patrick to lay on and I was frantic with worry while Jennifer wasn't doing any better but Erin made us leave so that she could have some space to work on Patrick's injuries, then Commander Baron showed up to investigate the commotion and demanded an explanation from us.

We explained everything that happened and Commander Baron listened to us, then she could no longer deny that the infiltrator was a real threat so she decided to take everyone in but on her terms and she had the others pull their weight and emphasized that they were to do whatever assignment she gave them with no exceptions.

Jennifer was given the assignment of going out on scavenging missions to search for supplies, Ryan was given the assignment of being the shelter's mechanic, Erin was to be the shelter's medic, Laura and Mark was to carry out their own assignments, then Jacob and I were to keep doing missions and Commander Baron told me that she would immediately put me to work once I made a full recovery.

The shelter was put on high alert after that but because of the intel Jacob had gathered in Pasadena, we slowed the advance of the annihilation line and it bought us some time to start preparing for a counterattack, now two weeks had passed by and I was currently wearing the same gray uniform to show that I was a member of the resistance while I had on a gray ball cap with the high-tech goggles as my ID number on my uniform shirt said DN178562.

Because of my excellent work during solo missions I had gone on after making a full recovery, I climbed up to the rank of Sergeant pretty quickly and Jacob had also been promoted to the same rank because of his successful work on his recon mission so while Commander Baron didn't show it, I knew she was impressed with my efforts but one thing I learned that surprised the hell out of me is that John Connor himself recommended the promotions so we must be doing pretty good work if it got his attention and he recommended it to Commander Baron.

Either way, Jacob and I were heading back to the shelter after I had gone to get him and we were approaching the entrance, not talking much since we were to report to Commander Baron for a new assignment as I spotted Jennifer waiting next to the stairs.

"Well, look at you two," Jennifer greeted and I sent her a nod.

"Hey Jennifer, we can't talk long since Jacob and I are to report to Commander Baron for our next assignment," I replied stoically and Jennifer chuckled.

"You know, when you two helped us in Pasadena three weeks ago, I was really trying hard not to panic because Jacob was a private and you were just a scavenger so sorry for underestimating you both, guess I should salute or something," Jennifer said and I shook my head.

"You don't need to do that, so how is Patrick?" I asked with a look of concern.

"He's been getting better every day, so Erin says that he should be back on his feet in no time...she's done a great job with him so I wish I could repay her somehow, though it just doesn't seem that she needs anything," Jennifer explained and I was glad that Patrick was going to make a recovery soon.

"So, are you getting ready for another scavenging run?" Jacob inquired.

"No, I just came out here to catch my breath since Baron is giving us the entire evening off, believe it or not," Jennifer replied, catching me by surprise.

"Really? That doesn't sound like her but anyway, like I said before, Jacob and I need to report to her so we'll see you later," I said before Jacob and I went past her, going down the steps and making our way to the entrance until we stopped in front of the door and Jacob knocked on it.

Jacob recited his last name and ID number to the door guard before the door slid open and we went inside, making our way down the hall as we passed other people when I saw Laura and Mark talking to each other and they spotted us approaching.

"Hey, I'm just catching up with Mark so I'll get back to work in a couple of minutes but you guys won't tell, right? Seriously, you two won't tell, right?" Laura asked nervously and I sent her a reassuring look.

"Don't worry, we won't say anything but you better not let Commander Baron catch you taking a break or she's gonna give you hell for it," I warned and Laura nodded in understanding as Jacob turned to look at Mark.

"Hey Mark, how's it going?" Jacob inquired and Mark shrugged.

"I'm going out soon, haven't made my daily quota yet since I still have three more rats to catch so if you or Adam see one, then let me know," Mark said and Jacob nodded.

"Sure, we'll keep an eye out," Jacob replied before he and I kept making our way to the command room, but not before we went to the quartermaster's room and checked on Ryan since he was sometimes seen there.

"Hey Ryan, how's everything?" I inquired and the older man turned to look at me and Jacob.

"Exactly as you would imagine since Baron's been keeping me busy, so they weren't kidding when they said she's a hardass," Ryan grumbled as he looked unamused and I nodded.

"Yeah, I know what you mean since she immediately put me on solo missions the second I made a full recovery, so what did you hear?" I asked.

"A lot of rumors going around about how she's sending insubordinate workers to the front line, and by insubordinate, I mean people who aren't willing to work eighteen hours a day, every day," Ryan explained and I winced at that while Jacob grimaced.

"Yeah, we've been hearing those rumors as well but we need to go since Commander Baron is expecting us and we don't want to keep her waiting," Jacob said and Ryan sent us a look of sympathy before gesturing for us to go.

We continued walking as I held a stony expression on my face that had a few small scars on it now because of the hardships I have been experiencing in this universe, so I was no longer that kid who woke up in Pasadena scared and confused since I was now a hardened survivor who was just trying to stay alive in this hellish world, though I spotted Erin up ahead as we were making our way to the command room and noticed that she looked distracted about something.

"Hey Erin, you okay?" Jacob asked, causing Erin to look at us while she huffed in response.

"Me? Honey, I'm about the most well-adjusted person in this goddamn place so it's the others you two should be concerned about," Erin pointed out and I looked concerned as I thought about Jennifer.

"You mean Jennifer?" I inquired and Erin nodded.

"I'm worried about her so I was the one who asked Baron to give her team a little break since Jennifer's been busy scavenging supplies for the soldiers and she hardly had time to see Patrick but, now that she's finally got a day off, she's avoiding him like the plague," Erin explained and I realized that she must feel guilty for Patrick getting injured so I'll have to talk to her about that once Jacob and I come back from our next assignment.

"What about Ryan?" Jacob questioned.

"He's not so hot either but that's another story," Erin replied and now I started to feel concerned for Ryan since Commander Baron has been having him work to the bone so I would have to convince the commander to have him take a break since this couldn't be healthy for him, especially at his age.

"So, how's Patrick doing?" I asked with a look of concern on my face.

"He's fine, but it wouldn't kill you and Jacob if you two checked on him yourselves," Erin told us and Jacob nodded.

"We'll be sure to do that, now is there anything you need?" Jacob inquired and Erin shook her head.

"No, and I have to say that the resistance is pretty well supplied so don't tell me that you two miss running errands for me because I don't believe that for a second," Erin said with a smirk and I smiled in response.

"And what about something other than medicine?" I questioned and Erin sighed.

"Honey, I'm not shy so I'll let you or Jacob know if I need anything, okay? But thank you for asking," Erin said and I nodded.

"Okay, take care," I replied before I decided to take her advice and went to check up on Patrick, Jacob following me as we went into a room next to Erin that had Patrick lying on a bed while Max was sitting next to the bed and keeping watch as the dog was panting slightly.

"Hey kiddo, how are you doing?" I asked as I entered the room and walked up to the bed, kneeling and petting Max while the puppy loved the attention.

"Good, Erin's going to let me leave in a couple of days and Jacob brought me my chalk while you were hurt a couple of weeks ago, so I've been drawing a lot because I'd be so bored without it," Patrick told me.

"Good to hear, so how's Jennifer?" I inquired.

"She's out a lot but I understand since she's a scavenger," Patrick replied and I knew that I would have to talk to Jennifer so that I could convince her to check up on Patrick.

"I see, though what do you think about living in the shelter?" I questioned.

"I like that there's a lot of people here and I heard a funny joke yesterday, want to hear it?" Patrick asked and I nodded.

"Sure, tell us," I replied.

"Okay, what's brown and sticky? A stick," Patrick said and I chuckled while Jacob smiled.

"Yeah, that is kinda funny," Jacob admitted and Patrick smiled in response.

"I know, right?" Patrick commented until I sighed.

"Anyway, we have to go so we'll see you later," I said until I stood up, Jacob and I leaving the room while he smiled at me.

"You know, you'd be a good older brother to him," Jacob told me and I nodded in response until I recalled the nightmare I had of him and everyone else getting killed by the machines as I started frowning.

"Yeah, I know," I agreed quietly as I looked distracted and Jacob appeared concerned by it.

"Is everything alright? You've been looking lost in thought for these past two weeks," Jacob pointed out and I sighed.

"Sorry, got a lot on my mind lately," I replied and Jacob looked like he wanted to keep pressing but he let it go as we arrived at the command room and I could see Commander Baron waiting for us.

"Commander, you wanted to see us?" Jacob inquired as we saluted and Commander Baron nodded.

"Good, you two are finally here so I have a special task for you both, now what I want you two to do is head downtown to check on the doctor," Commander Baron told us and I assumed that she meant Alvin.

"You mean Alvin?" I asked.

"Yes, he's out there making sure that our defense systems are working properly so, ever since we went radio silent, I had a small team of trustworthy messengers maintaining communications between our outposts.

But, they haven't returned so I want you two to go downtown and see why that happened, and while it might be nothing, General Connor doesn't want any hiccups while he's up in the North Division preparing the attack on Skynet's central core," Commander Baron explained and Jacob looked thoughtful.

"You think there might be a problem with the radio?" Jacob questioned.

"The annihilation line is within spitting distance of downtown so we suspect that Skynet will be intercepting all transmissions from that location, which is why we're going radio silent for now and that's why I need you both to go there personally," Commander Baron replied.

"You said something about Skynet's central core so what is that?" Jacob asked curiously.

"Skynet's main reactor, the source of all the machines' power so we shut down the central core, we shut down Skynet, and General Connor's preparing the attack as we speak so you both understand that we can't have any critical complications at this stage," Commander Baron stated and I nodded.

"Understood, we'll move out immediately," I said before Jacob and I left the command room, making our way to the entrance until we left the shelter and headed out to our main objective.

We made our way through the ruins of the city, using shortcuts to get to our next assignment as the sun had risen and it didn't take long until I started hearing the sounds of fighting as we got closer to downtown until we took an underground tunnel and I could hear agonized groaning and someone calling for a medic up ahead when we entered a temporary outpost that had a few wounded resistance soldiers and we headed over to one of them.

"What's happening, private?" Jacob asked as the injured man wheezed and let out pained groans, the man having been shot by a machine by the looks of it as he was laying on a makeshift cot and he grimaced.

"Couple of aerials flew in and dropped containers full of metals, then they started shooting while our defense systems did nothing," the soldier groaned and I winced at the plasma burn that was on his leg so I can't imagine how painful that must be for him.

"What about Alvin, the doctor? Do you know where he is?" I questioned and the soldier nodded weakly.

"Yeah, the poor bastard's still out there but one more thing...before I got hit and was dragged here, I saw something and I'm not what it was but...I think it was one of our own soldiers that led Skynet's attack," the soldier wheezed out and I was shocked to hear that one of our own might be a collaborator, but then a more horrifying thought came to mind and I paled significantly.

'No...it couldn't have survived that,' I thought as the possibility of the infiltrator surviving the explosions and walking around in a resistance uniform to sabotage our operations scared the shit out of me, then I recalled that the T-850 was built to take a beating and that nothing short of either being crushed by a presser or blasted to pieces by plasma rifles was the only way to stop it.

Jacob seemed to have come to the same conclusion since he looked tense and sent me a wary expression as we walked away from the injured man and approached a soldier who was guarding a makeshift door, the man's body language telling me that he was nervous as his face was covered with a gray bandanna, goggles, and a helmet when he spotted us.

"Sergeants, we're outnumbered and they keep bringing more wounded so we need to evacuate because we don't stand a chance," the soldier told us uneasily, sounding completely stressed out and I didn't blame him for that, considering the situation.

"Is Alvin still out there?" I asked and the soldier nodded.

"He is, sir," the soldier confirmed.

"Then we can't afford to evacuate yet since we have to bring him back and see what the hell is going on with those defenses, then we brief Commander Baron on what's happening here so you stay here with the wounded while Sgt Sullivan and I go out to bring Alvin back here," Jacob ordered.

"Do you want me to break radio silence?" the soldier inquired and I shook my head.

"No, can't afford to have Skynet listen in on our communications so maintain radio silence for now until we bring back Alvin," I said and the soldier nodded.

"Understood, sir," the soldier said as Jacob and I stacked up at the left side of the door and Jacob signaled to the soldier to open the door.

I could hear plasma fire and explosions raging on outside as the soldier went to slide open the door, then Jacob and I quickly went outside before I noticed that we were in a large crater that led up to the downtown district until Jacob and I started making our way up when we hurried over to a couple of soldiers that were taking cover.

"You two, stay right on our six because we have to reach those defense systems!" Jacob ordered over the sounds of the battle and I spotted an aerial passing by our location nearby.

"Yes sir!" one of the soldiers acknowledged before we started making a run for it.

We ran as fast as we could when I spotted an armored spider up ahead, one of the soldiers pointing it out when we took cover and shot its weakness to destroy it, then we continued forward once the threat was taken care of and made our way down into an underground tunnel, where another soldier was using it as cover.

"Good to see you, Sergeants!" the soldier greeted loudly and I sent him a nod.

"What's the status?!" I shouted over the plasma fire.

"We've got a defensive perimeter set up just down the road!" the soldier replied just as loudly when we continued running outside and I saw the defensive perimeter he was talking about, only it was taking one hell of a beating as the soldiers were putting up one hell of a fight.

"It doesn't seem to be working!" Jacob pointed out and the soldier nodded with a scowl as we quickly took cover and I saw armored spiders, T-800s, T-808s with plasma turrets, and drones up ahead.

"Skynet dropped reinforcements behind their backs, now they're between a rock and a hard place!" the soldier confirmed and my eyes hardened at that.

"Then let's provide some assistance, now clear the way so that we can reach our guys!" I ordered while aiming at a T-800 and shot it in the head to destroy it, prompting everyone else to fire their rifles as a few drones were rendered into scrap by Jacob, and the T-808s were also taken care of by the soldiers.

"Keep moving!" Jacob shouted and that caused us to dart out of cover and run forward but it wasn't over yet as we came across more machines.

"Watch it, T-47!" a soldier alerted us suddenly and my eyes widened in alarm when I saw the giant mech arriving to block our path and we quickly ducked into cover to avoid getting turned into pink mist by its arm cannons.

"Fuck, anybody got an RPG or explosives?!" I yelled and one of the soldiers tossed me a can grenade.

"Here you go, Sgt!" the soldier exclaimed as I caught the large explosive and sent him a nod of appreciation.

"Thanks, now lay down cover fire so that I can flank it!" I shouted, prompting the others to open fire at the large machine.

Once I saw that the T-47 was focused on the others, I moved from cover to cover while also shooting any T-800s or drones that got in my way when I took cover near the T-47 and took out the can grenade, twisting the handle to activate it and I threw the explosive at the mech's legs until I ducked down and covered my head.

The explosive sent the large mech crashing to the ground as its legs were blown off and we took advantage of it by shooting it in the face, destroying the head and rendering the large machine inoperable as it let out a metallic roar and shut down.

"Finally, thank Christ it's dead!" Jacob yelled as we destroyed the remaining stragglers in the area and continued running forward, reaching an overpass and encountering more machines.

"Flamethrowers!" a soldier yelled and my eyes widened at that.

"Shit, aim for the gas tank on their backs!" I ordered as I aimed at a gas canister and shot it.

The gas tank went flying around before it went straight at the machines with the flamethrowers, the explosion taking out a couple and damaging the rest before we shot them to pieces as more armored spiders, drones, and T-800s were arriving.

I took out a pipe bomb and lit it, throwing the explosive at the machines and the explosion took out a few T-800s and T-808s, then Jacob and I shot down several drones as the soldiers were taking care of the armored spiders but one thing I've noticed is that the machines weren't shooting at me during the fight so that meant Skynet has given all of its troops orders to capture me, which made things much easier for me since I can just run away without being shot at but that also meant that they would fight twice as hard to capture me as we finished clearing the area.

"Sergeants, take two of my men and proceed up that hill while the rest of us stay here to keep Skynet away from you," a soldier said and I nodded in response.

With two soldiers assisting us, Jacob and I proceeded to go up a nearby hill but then I spotted a few HK tanks in the distance once we made it to the top of the hill, making me bug my eyes out since that was seriously not good so we needed to pick up the pace before the tanks arrive.

With that in mind, we started running even faster as we soon made it to what used to be a highway and we encountered armored spiders, drones, and T-800s before we were forced to take cover and I shot down a few drones while Jacob took care of the rest.

With the drones destroyed, we focused on the armored spiders and the T-800s as I shot a couple of the metal skeletons in the head to destroy them and was forced to reload as Jacob and the others took care of the rest.

"It's clear!" a soldier yelled once we were finished taking care of the machines.

"Wait here and cover the area, we'll secure the doctor," I ordered before Jacob and I started running to a nearby makeshift shack and we went inside, then we soon found Alvin hiding and he saw us coming before standing up.

"Oh my god, am I actually glad to see you two!" Alvin exclaimed in relief.

"Alvin, what the hell happened here and why are the defense systems not working?" Jacob questioned and Alvin grimaced.

"They are working, but their target filtering has been reset to non-hostile because one of Baron's messengers came with the order to temporarily change it, so I did," Alvin explained and that's when my eyes widened in horror as I came to a realization and so did Jacob if his expression told me anything.

"Oh fuck, we need to leave right now," I stated urgently and Alvin quickly nodded.

"Yes, I'm all for that so let's do that!" Alvin exclaimed frantically just before a loud explosion broke out behind us, making me look back to see that a couple of soldiers were lying on the ground dead when more explosions happened and we stumbled around from the shockwaves.

"Are you okay?! We need to move!" Jacob yelled and Alvin nodded.

"You or Sgt. Sullivan don't need to tell me twice!" Alvin agreed before we all started running back the way we came.

Unfortunately, mortar fire forced us to run across the overpass and we took cover to avoid getting shot at by an aerial that was flying over us while Alvin shouted about how he didn't like this, though I ignored it and my eyes widened when I saw that the aerial was turning around.

"Oh shit, move your asses!" I yelled and the others didn't argue as we kept running for our lives, the aerial firing missiles and plasma at the others as we kept running and ducked into a nearby building, trying to stay alive as we struggled to get to safety.

Somehow, we managed to get back to the shelter in one piece as the soldiers at the outpost had also evacuated as well, now we were walking down the hall to Alvin's lab as I was relieved that we had escaped that nightmare but now there was the problem of how Commander Baron is going to react to the news since I know that she certainly isn't going to be happy.

'She's definitely going to be pissed once we tell her that she supposedly gave the order to have the defensive systems reset to non-hostile because I know she won't like the accusation,' I thought as we came to a stop next to Alvin's lab and he looked at me and Jacob.

"You two go talk to Commander Baron because I've had enough excitement for one day," Alvin admitted until he went into his lab and Jacob looked at me.

"Well, are you ready to face the music?" Jacob asked and I grimaced at the thought of Commander Baron being pissed.

"Actually, we should probably check on the others first before we tell the commander since I want to see how they are doing," I said before Jacob sighed.

"You're going to try and put it off for a little bit longer, right?" Jacob asked, prompting me to remove my hat so that I could run my hand through my hair, which had gone greasy over these past few weeks since showers don't exist anymore in this world.

"To be honest, I'm not looking forward to her reaction once we tell her that she supposedly sent out a messenger to order Alvin to reset the defensive systems' targeting filter to non-hostile because she's not going to like the accusation of possibly sabotaging the resistance's operations," I pointed out and Jacob nodded.

"I know what you mean, but putting it off is going to make it worse so come meet me at the command room once you're done," Jacob told me until he walked away and I was left to my thoughts after that while I put my hat back on.

I decided to see if Jennifer was around so I started looking around to see if I could find her as I let out a quiet sigh, walking down the hall and I eventually found Jennifer trying to keep warm at a barrel that had a fire lit.

"Hey, wasn't expecting to find you here since you always seem to be out these days," I greeted and Jennifer looked at me.

"True, I've been making extra runs to stock up on resources lately because the truth is that I was even thinking about leaving, but right now, I'm just waiting for my team to head back to downtown to look for other survivors.

Let's hope there are still some," Jennifer told me and I was surprised that she was thinking about leaving, but I noticed that something was on her mind lately and wanted to know what it was.

"You know, you seem distracted lately so what's on your mind?" I asked curiously and Jennifer smiled.

"I have a secret to tell you so it turns out that you have a fan because Patrick really looks up to you and Jacob so it's good for him to have a role model, and I don't think he could've chosen better," Jennifer explained and I was surprised to hear that.

"Well, um, I wasn't expecting Jacob and me to become role models for the kid but I'm okay with it so thank you, it means a lot," I said while rubbing the back of my head shyly and Jennifer blinked at that.

"Are you kidding? It's the least I can do after you and Jacob did so much for us because if you two hadn't found us in Pasadena, I don't know what would've happened...scratch that, I do know what would've happened and it would be exactly what the others said would happen.

People were talking about the annihilation line months before it came and my father tried to turn it all into a joke, of course," Jennifer said.

"But what did you think about it?" I inquired and Jennifer sighed.

"I didn't know what to think since travelers would bring all sorts of gossip with them but this kept coming back, and when Patrick asked me if I was scared, I lied and said that I wasn't...you could feel the mood change at the house.

The community my father tried to build started falling apart with fewer and fewer people coming by, and if they did, they weren't always friendly while we started to notice things going missing and it was little things at first.

Pretty soon, people got nervous, and with time, it even got to my father," Jennifer explained solemnly.

"So, did it ever get to you?" I asked.

"Of course it did because, for the first time in my life, there were only the three of us at the house, and after a while, my father changed the big sign on the side of the house from 'welcome' to 'beware', then he put a lock on the door and started carrying a shotgun.

I didn't even know he owned a gun since he always said that he didn't believe in them, then I wanted to leave our house and run but he didn't want to listen, said it was the only place he could keep us safe...thanks for letting me spill my guts like that," Jennifer told me and I nodded.

"No problem, though I see that Patrick's doing better," I said and Jennifer smiled.

"He is, he's a fighter and certainly has more courage than I do," Jennifer admitted and I chuckled.

"Well, I'm glad he's getting better but now I'm curious, why did you want to leave?" I questioned and Jennifer frowned.

"In the face of what's going on now, it'll sound stupid, but it just got to be a bit much, you know? With Patrick getting hurt and everything, I started to wonder if I was even doing him any good by sticking around.

I've been trying to protect him all this time but I couldn't and I've proven that much already...first in Pasadena, then at the safe house so I was thinking that maybe he'd be safer here at the shelter but don't worry, I've changed my mind since," Jennifer admitted and my eyes softened at that.

"Jennifer, you're doing the best you can under these circumstances and so does Patrick so nobody expects you to move heaven and earth for him...and I haven't told anyone this, but back when we were escaping Pasadena, I had a nightmare about you and everyone else getting killed by the machines.

So, with Colin getting killed by the infiltrator and Patrick getting hurt as we fled the shelter to escape that thing, I've been wondering if Jacob and I should leave so that you guys wouldn't be in danger because Patrick getting hurt scared the hell out of me.

I'm just terrified at the thought of people dying because of me and Jacob so I don't know what to do and it's frustrating," I confessed and Jennifer looked surprised.

"Adam, I had no idea that this has been weighing on you for so long, but we'll be okay as long as we stick together so you don't have to worry about us since I imagine that Erin will give you a swift boot in the ass for letting this get to you so much," Jennifer said wryly and I chuckled.

"Yeah, I imagine she would...anyway, I'm gonna go so I'll see you later," I stated before I walked away after that.

I went to check on the others and Ryan had told me he found a cassette tape that I would like, something from before judgment day but he confessed that his boombox wasn't working so he asked if I could look for a replacement and I told him that I would keep an eye out for one if I was out on another assignment, then I made my way to the command room as I was tense about what was going to happen next as I saw Jacob waiting for me.

"Hey, you ready?" Jacob asked and I sighed.

"As ready as I'll ever be so let's get this over with," I replied, then I steeled myself as we entered the command room and saw Commander Baron waiting for us as she sported a scowl on her face.

"Rivers, Sullivan, either of you want to explain to me what the hell happened?" Commander Baron demanded as she looked less than happy.

"We lost downtown," Jacob replied.

"I know that much, but how is that possible? What happened to our defense systems?" Commander Baron questioned and I knew that I wasn't going to look forward to this next part.

"Alvin says one of our soldiers came with an order directly from you to reset the target settings for non-lethals," I answered and Commander Baron widened her eyes.

"He said what? Okay, this is what I want you both to do, find whoever is responsible for sending that order, and to make it easier, all the messengers have GPS tracking so we're keeping tabs on their location, now find them, and bring them to me," Commander Baron ordered before Jacob and I nodded.

"Understood," Jacob said.

"And Sergeants, despite what I might say about our resident egghead, I truly have a hard time believing that my men are incompetent so expect the unexpected, and you two know what I mean by that," Commander Baron stated and I knew what she meant by that.

"Do you think the infiltrator's back?" I asked as I looked completely serious.

"We won't be sure until you two find those messengers and confirm my suspicions," Commander Baron replied and Jacob looked thoughtful.

"Now that you mention it, one of the soldiers said that it looked as if one of our guys led Skynet's attack," Jacob pointed out and Commander Baron nodded.

"That only supports my case so, as soon as you two know what's going on, radio me," Commander Baron told us and I frowned.

"You want us to break radio silence?" I questioned and Commander Baron sighed.

"At this point, they already have a head start on us so we can't afford to lose any time," Commander Baron stated and Jacob nodded.

"Understood, we'll move out immediately," Jacob said before we saluted Commander Baron and left the command room, making our way to the entrance when I was surprised to see Patrick up ahead as he was moving down the hall.

"Patrick, you're up already?" I asked as we approached him.

"There are people who need help more than I do, though I can't talk right now since I have to bring something important to Erin," Patrick said and I nodded.

"Okay, Jacob and I are about to head out on an assignment so we'll see you once we get back," I replied before Patrick went to go see Erin, then Jacob and I made our way to the entrance until we left the shelter and went out into the ruins while I hoped that I was wrong about the infiltrator still being alive and that it was only the messengers that had become collaborators.

Chapter Text

Jacob and I kept moving through the ruins of LA as the day passed by, using our high-tech goggles to search for the messengers' GPS signals and it wasn't until we went down a path at night and arrived at the warehouse district that I started picking up the two signals on the hud of my goggles.

"Okay, got eyes on two GPS trackers so those must be our guys, but what the hell are they doing out here?" I wondered quietly and Jacob shrugged.

"No idea, though I have a bad feeling about this," Jacob admitted as we continued forward and I kept an eye on the aerial that was flying around in the distance.

We kept moving and I was tense by how quiet it was and it being night didn't help either since it just made things a bit eerier, which was why I kept my eyes and ears open when I spotted a T-808 flamer using a flamethrower up ahead and that caused me and Jacob to stop.

"A flamethrower...Adam, if either of us could get close enough to take a picture..." Jacob trailed off and I nodded in response.

"Yeah, though we should probably split up to find those soldiers since it would make finishing this mission even quicker, and I'd rather not be out here any longer than we need to be," I stated and Jacob looked thoughtful until he nodded.

"Okay, we'll meet back here once we're done but until then, let's stay in radio contact so that we can let each other know when we've found the soldiers," Jacob suggested and I couldn't argue with that.

With that said, we headed up the hill and avoided T-800s and an armored spider before we arrived at the train yard I remember hiding in that one train car from the patrol since I didn't have a plasma rifle at the time, now I was better armed as Jacob sent me a nod and we went off into different directions.

I went right and made sure to stay out of sight as I spotted a few machines patrolling and noticed a different turret scanning the area, the turret looking like it fires purple plasma but I assumed that it didn't have an audio sensor like the others so I kept moving.

I continued down the tracks and made a left, using rubble or wrecked cars as cover to avoid the machines because even though they won't shoot me, that didn't mean they wouldn't chase me to the ends of the earth if they were to spot me so I still had to be careful since I didn't want to lure any of them back to the shelter by accident.

With that in mind, I kept my head down and avoided any patrols while cutting through a few buildings to locate one of the messengers when I was forced to take cover against an old van to avoid a T-800 patrol that was coming.

I stayed hidden as the patrol was walking past the van and I made sure to get my rifle ready if I did get spotted, but they thankfully passed by without spotting me and I let out a quiet sigh of relief since that was too close, then I kept moving but came to a stop when I heard what appeared to be music coming from nearby.

"Where the hell is that coming from?" I muttered as I tried to figure out where that music was coming from, and then I looked around and noted that it was coming from a nearby building.

I decided to check it out but stayed cautious since this could be an ambush set up by the machines to lure any human survivors as I made my way over to the building, heading inside as the music got louder and could hear that it was coming from upstairs.

"Sounds like it's coming from upstairs," I murmured as I looked up at the ceiling with a thoughtful frown.

I knew there had to be a way up somewhere so I started to search the old store and found a set of stairs in the back, making my way up to the second floor and using my goggles to search for any hostiles that may be here.

My goggles picked up two T-800s walking around in one room where the music was blaring away so I slung my rifle and took out a termination knife, a makeshift knife created to kill T-800s but it only had one use so I needed to do this quietly.

With that in mind, I saw one of the T-800s pass by the door and slowly made my way into the room before I saw the machine stop to scan the area, allowing me to sneak up behind it until I rose with the knife held up.

I grabbed the T-800 from behind and stabbed it right where the CPU was located, causing it to shut down and my heart raced while I couldn't believe that I had killed this thing with just a knife, though I still had the second T-800 to deal with so I took out another termination knife and quietly headed over to where the bathroom was.

The second I arrived at the bathroom, I spotted the T-800 as it scanned the area and snuck up to it before I used the termination knife to kill it, then it shut down because of its CPU being destroyed and I let out a shaky breath.

'Jesus, I really hope that I don't have to do anything like that again because that was terrifying,' I thought as I tried to calm my nerves by letting out slow and deep breaths.

Now that the two machines were dead, I made my way over to where the music was coming from and was surprised to see that the source was a boombox that was blaring away, wondering how the thing was still functional after all these years but that didn't matter since I knew that Ryan would be happy once I gave it to him.

"This better be worth it, Ryan," I muttered as I shut off the boombox and put it in my backpack.

With the boombox secure in my backpack, now I can get back to my current mission as I made my way back down the stairs and exited the building, continuing to make my way to where one of the GPS signals was as it got stronger the closer I got.

I continued forward while avoiding any patrols when I saw on my HUD that I was really close, just before I heard a beeping sound nearby and started making my way to the source when I found it, along with the dead body of a resistance solder as it looked like his heart had been ripped out of his chest.

"Aw shit," I muttered as I grimaced from what I saw and shook my head at the awful sight, though dead bodies didn't affect me as much as they did before but it wasn't something I didn't think I would ever get used to as I knelt to check the body and didn't find his radio.

'Fuck, they took his radio so Baron was right, Skynet has been listening to our communications,' I thought as I stood up, reaching for my radio so that I could contact Jacob.

"Jacob, come in," I said and waited for him to respond.

"Adam, did you find one of the messengers?" Jacob asked and I sighed.

"Yeah, he's dead and I have even more bad news...his radio's gone so Baron was right about Skynet listening in on our communications," I replied grimly.

"Shit, I guess we know what happened to one of them but if he's dead, then the other one might also not be in good shape," Jacob pointed out while I started looking pensive.

"Okay, I'll make my way back to the trainyard and wait for you there but Jacob, this guy died recently so watch yourself because whatever killed him could still be lurking around," I warned tensely.

"Will do, I'm close to the second tracker so I'll let you know what I find," Jacob said and we stopped talking after that.

I started making my way back to the trainyard and used the darkness to my advantage as I was on edge, having a bad feeling about this since the body of the soldier was definitely still fresh so he's been dead for a couple of days at least from what I could tell.

Still, I wasn't liking this and it was making the possibility of the infiltrator still being alive more and more likely, which is something I prayed wouldn't be true since the thought of that thing still walking around sent a cold chill down my spine as I soon made it back to the trainyard and made sure to stay hidden while I waited for Jacob to contact me.

"Adam, you there?" Jacob spoke up several minutes later and I reached for my radio.

"I'm here, did you find the other soldier?" I inquired and Jacob sighed.

"Yeah, he's dead," Jacob replied and I wasn't happy when I heard that.

"Dammit, that wasn't what I wanted to hear," I stated in displeasure.

"It gets worse, the poor bastard's goggles were still intact and he managed to take a picture of his killer...Adam, it was the infiltrator that was responsible for this," Jacob told me grimly, confirming my worst fears.

"Fuck, I was hoping you weren't going to tell me that so what now? That thing is still walking around and sabotaging our operations so we need to put it down permanently before it can cause any more damage," I pointed out with a scowl on my face since I was pretty much sick of that thing not dying and just wanted to destroy it at this point.

"Well, I'm currently destroying a Skynet outpost so once I make my way back to you, we'll contact Commander Baron and let her know what we've found," Jacob told me, just before I heard a large explosion happening in the distance so I assumed that was him taking down the outpost he mentioned.

"Okay, just don't take too long getting back here because standing around in the middle of a hostile environment is making me nervous," I admitted tensely while looking around from time to time so that I could keep an eye out for any of Skynet's troops that were patrolling the area.

After that, I continued to wait but I was on edge and feeling a bit twitchy from standing around in a very dangerous location while the thought of the infiltrator being alive and possibly hunting for me and Jacob right now didn't help either when I heard something coming and quickly aimed in the direction of whatever it was.

"Jesus, Adam, it's just me!" a familiar voice hissed in alarm and I saw that it was Jacob, making me lower my rifle.

"Sorry, just a bit jumpy," I said quietly and Jacob sighed.

"I don't blame you, not after what we've just discovered so let's give Commander Baron an update on the mission and get the hell out of here," Jacob stated and I nodded as I reached for my earpiece.

"Commander, come in," I said.

"Talk to me," Commander Baron responded.

"We tracked down the messengers and discovered that they're dead so everything turned out the way you said it would," I explained and Commander Baron sighed.

"Copy that, now get out of there...let's meet at the docks so that we can figure out our next move, now get there as soon as possible," Commander Baron ordered until she stopped talking and I looked at Jacob, who looked confused.

"I don't get it, why the hell would she give out our location like that?" Jacob wondered and I looked thoughtful since that did seem strange of her to do that but one thing I could think of is that it might be to lure the infiltrator there so that we could finally destroy it.

"I don't know, but looks like the docks are our next destination so let's go," I said and we started making our way out of the warehouse district, much to my relief since I'm glad to leave this area.

It took a while but we made it to the docks and started searching for Commander Baron, being extremely cautious since there was a pretty good chance that the infiltrator was already here and looking for us when a resistance soldier came to meet us and he took us to Commander Baron, who was in a small building and she saw us approaching her.

"You two are still alive? Good, Skynet's apparently got a real hard-on for you two so we figured why not use you both as bait?" Commander Baron spoke up and I wasn't all that keen on being used as bait as I frowned slightly.

"Aren't you even just a little concerned that Skynet will bring a shitload of firepower if it knows that all three of us are here?" I questioned while looking tense and Commander Baron turned her attention to me.

"Concerned? No, but prepared for that eventuality? Yes, we've got eyes on the ambush sight from every angle so if anyone shows up, then that means they were listening," Commander Baron replied and Jacob looked uncertain.

"I don't know about this, what if whoever shows up is one of our guys or just a scavenger?" Jacob asked.

"Tough shit, we can't have anyone or anything sabotage our operations, not this time," Commander Baron stated and that got my attention.

"What do you mean by 'this time'?" I inquired and Commander Baron scowled.

"We were very close once before because we've been preparing for the final attack for years, but all it took was just one man to fuck everything up so that day, Perry...our previous field commander died and I inherited control of South Division.

Since then, I've been making sure that no one fucks up again," Commander Baron explained and I recognized the name Perry, who Kyle Reese had served under for a few years before he was chosen to be John's right-hand man so to hear that Perry died made me wonder just how much has changed the longer I'm here.

"We've got movement," a soldier informed us on the radio in a quiet tone of voice and that prompted us to move into cover.

"Take positions," Commander Baron ordered as she got a high-tech sniper rifle ready while Jacob and I unslung our rifles.

"What do you have eyes on?" Commander Baron inquired quietly.

"A hooded man's walking down the street," the soldier replied.

"Might be a scavenger," another soldier whispered as Jacob and I peered outside and saw who the soldier was talking about as the figure was walking out in the open without a care in the world.

"Rivers, Sullivan, you two saw him so is it the same model? Is it the infiltrator?" Commander Baron asked us as we watched the person just walking through the ambush site we set up.

"I can't tell," Jacob admitted with a look of uncertainty.

However, I was staring at the hooded person suspiciously and noticed that something was off about the person like the way he was walking out in the open far too calmly or how he didn't seem to care that he was fully exposed in such an extremely dangerous environment where any of Skynet's troops could kill him so that had to be the infiltrator since no sane person would be that stupid.

"That's definitely the infiltrator, no human would just walk out in the open like that far too calmly in this kind of environment unless they have a serious death wish," I said and Commander Baron aimed her rifle at the hooded person.

"Good enough for me," Commander Baron agreed before she fired a single shot, the red plasma bolt hitting the hooded figure and the person was knocked to the ground from the hit.

"Target down! I repeat, target down," a soldier said over the radio as we all popped out of cover.

"Go check him!" Commander Baron ordered, prompting me and Jacob to jump down from the hole in the wall as everyone else started leaving their own cover as well.

We slowly started approaching the hooded figure that was laying on the ground motionlessly, keeping our weapons trained on the person just in case he wasn't human as I focused on the body when it suddenly sat up with a second-generation plasma rifle aimed at Jacob.

"Watch out!" I shouted as I grabbed Jacob and threw ourselves out of the line of fire as purple plasma fire shot at where Jacob used to be.

"Take cover and return fire!" Commander Baron yelled as we all quickly moved into cover and started shooting back at the infiltrator.

"He's in the open!" a soldier shouted while I was firing at the infiltrator and hitting it as its clothes started getting torn from the constant plasma fire.

"It's a fucking machine so it's in the open!" Commander Baron corrected loudly as we kept firing.

We kept the fire up and didn't give the infiltrator any breathing room while its clothes started getting destroyed and its living tissue began to peel off in some places, showing the metal monstrosity underneath as one of its false eyes was destroyed by me shooting it in the head and its glowing red optic was revealed as it backed up into a dead end.

"It's backed against the wall!" a soldier exclaimed but I knew that the infiltrator would find a way to get out of this.

"Don't let your guard down because this fucking thing is built to take a beating!" I warned over the sounds of plasma fire, and just as I said that, the infiltrator ran to the wall on our left and smashed right through it.

"Shit, everyone on me!" Commander Baron yelled before we all darted out of cover and ran over to the large hole in the wall.

We went through it and found ourselves in a hallway but the purple plasma being shot at us forced us into cover as I heard Commander Baron yelling about how she wanted the plasma rifle the infiltrator was using, though I was more focused on killing the thing first as it took many hits from plasma fire until it bolted again.

We continued to chase after it as we ran into the shipping yard and took cover again as the infiltrator fired at Jacob and the others, missing me on purpose because of its orders to capture me while I was shooting at its head and hyper alloy combat chassis while it was barely having any effect.

"Goddammit, just fucking die already!" I shouted in complete frustration as I was more than pissed that this thing just wouldn't go down when I spotted a gas canister near its location.

I shot the gas canister and it went flying before colliding into the infiltrator, causing a big explosion that made us instinctively duck back into cover and I peered out before my eyes widened at the sight of the infiltrator coming out of the fire with its clothes as nothing more than rags and most of its living tissue gone while it went down a path to our right.

We chased after it for the third time as we passed by old semi-trucks and cargo containers while the infiltrator went into a section of the shipping yard, then Jacob and I went first before I quickly spotted the infiltrator up on a container to our left and it started firing at us.

"Jesus, get to cover!" I exclaimed in alarm before we darted into cover, just as the plasma fire caused one of the containers to fall and block the way we came in with a deafening crash as it prevented Commander Baron and the other soldiers from getting to us.

"Rivers, Sullivan, we're trying to find another way around so you two can't let it get away!" Commander Baron stated urgently on our radios as the plasma fire stopped and I peered out to see that the infiltrator was gone.

I knew that we couldn't let this thing get away or it might attack us again when we least expect it, so I moved out of cover with Jacob right behind me as we continued forward with our rifles up when we turned around a corner to our left and were forced to duck down from the plasma being shot at us.

Jacob signaled for me to move and I ran as the plasma fire stopped once I was out of cover, Jacob covering me with suppressive fire and I noticed that we were in a location that had an old office and a rusted out semi-truck but I didn't pay much attention to it as I rolled into cover and fired at the infiltrator to cover Jacob.

Once he made it to my location, I noted a few gas canisters and had an idea so I signaled to Jacob that we should flank it from both sides in a pincer movement after using the gas canisters to damage it, then Jacob nodded as we stayed down from the plasma fire and waited until it started reloading its rifle.

Jacob and I popped up while it was reloading and shot at every gas canister we could see, the canisters flying around before they all flew into the infiltrator, causing a chain-reaction of explosions that made us duck down and cover our ears from the deafening sounds.

My ears were ringing after that but I shook it off as Jacob and I went in different directions, the two of us circling to flank the infiltrator from both sides and Jacob and I alternated between shooting and tossing pipe bombs at it as the machine was getting overwhelmed when my last pipe bomb flung it to the ground and it was reduced to crawling on the ground while Jacob and I slowly approached it, then I aimed my rifle down at it as the machine looked up at me with its glowing red optic.

"You're terminated, motherfucker," I said coldly before shooting it in the back non-stop until it got destroyed and stopped moving, though I made sure to kick it a few times just to make sure it was dead and reloaded my rifle as Jacob went to contact Commander Baron.

"Commander, the infiltrator is down so we finally got it," Jacob notified the commander as I let out a sigh of pure relief.

"Good job, we're on our way so you and Sullivan stay there," Commander Baron told us before she stopped speaking and I looked at Jacob.

"I don't know about you, but I'm looking forward to taking a break after all that," I commented breathlessly and Jacob nodded in agreement as we waited for Commander Baron and the other soldiers to show up.

It didn't take long for them to show up and we started lugging the machine back to the shelter when we made it back after a few hours and I was dead tired at that point, though the others couldn't deny that Skynet had created a cybernetic organism anymore and people started getting paranoid that there were infiltrators among us as most of the residents in the shelter got scared of this terrifying new revelation.

It got so bad that some of the residents left the shelter out of fear for their own lives, even though we hadn't seen any other infiltrators show up but that didn't matter as paranoia and distrust had settled in so I knew that Skynet had won for now by turning people against each other and that would make winning this war that much harder so I prayed for a miracle since we could really use one right now.

Chapter Text

I was focused on getting my gear together and getting ready to move out since one of the soldiers in the shelter told me that Commander Baron wanted me and Jacob to report to her for a new assignment, though I had heard a Tech-Com unit from up north was arriving so I was interested who they could be because it's not every day a unit from Connor's division would show up here.

Either way, I had zipped up my backpack and put it on before making my way to the entrance, passing by other people and going by Alvin's lab as he was still studying the dead infiltrator when I came across Jennifer and she saw me as she was trying to stay warm.

"Hey, you're leaving again?" Jennifer asked and I nodded.

"Yeah, Jacob and I are to report to Commander Baron for a new assignment but I wasn't told what it is, just that we are to go see Commander Baron so that we can get the details from her so I need to go get Jacob first," I replied.

"In that case, mind if I come with you?" Jennifer inquired and I shrugged.

"Don't see why not," I answered stoically and Jennifer joined me as I made my way to the entrance.

The door guards opened the door before Jennifer and I left the shelter, heading outside and I noticed Commander Baron near the entrance but she was speaking to someone while they were right in front of a rusty functional car with four-by-four lights, which looked very familiar to me but I noticed that the person Commander Baron was talking to isn't alone as there was a young female soldier with a ballistics helmet that had high-tech goggles and I spotted a large male soldier nearby, the female soldier standing next to a large armored transport truck while the large male soldier was sitting on a crate as I frowned slightly.

I couldn't get over how the female solder looked really familiar to me but I couldn't quite figure out why that was, though I shook my head and decided that I would figure it out later as Jennifer and I went over to the smaller building that was nearby.

We went inside through the garage and I saw Jacob lying on a mattress while noticing him twitching and mumbling in his sleep, and judging by the look of distress on his face, he must be having a pretty bad nightmare and I felt bad for him since no one deserves to grow up in this kind of nightmare but I've also been having nightmares recently, only it was about my world getting destroyed by Skynet while my friends and relatives are being slaughtered by the machines.

I knew that this hell was changing me and I was afraid of what I would become the longer I was trapped in this hellhole, though I tried to keep some of my humanity intact because the second I started making cold and calculated decisions like a machine is the second humanity loses the war so I watched Jacob as he jerked awake, quickly sitting up and looking around until he saw us and relaxed slightly.

"Sleeping on the job, I see," Jennifer remarked but I could see a glint of concern in her eyes as Jacob still looked groggy.

"What?" Jacob questioned wearily.

"Hey, Commander Baron wants to see us so get your gear and get ready," I spoke up and Jacob gently rubbed his eyes as I saw Jennifer looking for something.

"Alright, alright, just give me a minute," Jacob grumbled as he yawned and Jennifer perked up, telling me that she found what she was looking for.

"There they are, knew I'd find them here," Jennifer muttered as she picked up a wooden box but I was still concerned about Jacob since it looked like he was having a pretty bad nightmare.

"Jacob, you okay? You were muttering and twitching in your sleep," I said and Jacob sighed.

"Just a bad dream," Jacob replied and I knew there was more to it, but I let it go since he didn't appear eager to talk about it.

"Yeah, I know what that's like but anyway, we should get going since I saw Commander Baron outside with visitors so we shouldn't keep her waiting," I stated as Jacob got up and started getting his gear together while looking curious.

"Visitors?" Jacob asked and I shrugged to show that I was also in the dark about it as he was.

"A Tech-Com unit from up north, or what's left of it at least but something's going on since everyone appears to be on edge so I figured you should be given a heads up about it," I told him as Jacob finished getting his gear and he nodded at me.

"I'll be sure to keep it in mind, thanks," Jacob said before I gestured for him to follow me.

After that, we left the garage and started to make our way to Commander Baron as I was lost in thought and wondering who these visitors were since one of them looked familiar but what I was confused about was why everyone was on edge and I had woken up with everyone acting unsettled so I was hoping that Jacob and I would get some answer as we approached Commander Baron and the soldier she was talking to, just close enough to hear what they were saying.

"I appreciate you taking us in, commander," the soldier said thankfully and my eyes widened at how his voice sounded so familiar to me.

"I was sorry to hear about your team," Commander Baron stated and the soldier sighed.

"A fucking ambush...I'll write it in the report," the soldier said bitterly as he and Commander Baron turned slightly and I was able to see the side of the man's face but it wasn't enough for me to see what he actually looked like.

"That can wait because new orders have come in for you," Commander Baron said and I could see that the soldier didn't look happy to hear that.

"Excuse me?" the soldier questioned.

"You're moving out right away," Commander Baron replied, and judging from what I could see, the soldier was scowling at that.

"Commander, with all due respect, we just lost three men so I and Ferro need some time to recover," the soldier stated irritably.

"I'm afraid that's not possible because the Northridge outpost has gone silent so you need to go there, find out what happened, and-" Commander Baron started to say and was cut off.

"And what, check if their radio's on? You know that Skynet's been jamming our signal," the soldier pointed out and Commander Baron sighed while gently rubbing her eyes.

"That may be true, but you'll still need to see to this personally," Commander Baron argued and the soldier started tensing up.

"What the hell is going on, Baron?" the soldier questioned and Commander Baron looked frustrated.

"Look, it doesn't make sense to me either since I could've sent a team of my own, then they'd already be there and we would know what went wrong," Commander Baron stated as she crossed her arms.

"So, why didn't you?" the soldier asked,

"Because the order's coming directly from John Connor himself, who insisted that it be you carrying out the mission," Commander Baron replied and the soldier paused at that until he appeared resigned.

"Okay, so what's the plan?" the soldier inquired before he and Commander Baron went to take a look at something that was on the car's hood.

"Go to Northridge, find out what happened, then escort the people there back to safety since their withdrawal is long overdue," Commander Baron instructed and the soldier nodded.

"Okay, though word is that you've captured a new terminator model," the soldier pointed out and Commander Baron nodded.

"That's right, an infiltrator unit so our top scientist is running an analysis on it as we speak," Commander Baron explained as she and the soldier turned again, then she noticed me and Jacob standing near her and the soldier but continued speaking to the soldier.

"Does that have anything to do with this mission?" the soldier asked and Commander Baron looked thoughtful.

"The last we heard from Northridge was that they liberated a group of scavengers so that's certainly a possibility," Commander Baron replied and the soldier frowned at that.

"I see," the soldier muttered just before Commander Baron turned to look at me and Jacob before pointing at us.

"Jacob Rivers and Adam Sullivan here helped us capture the new model so they'll be joining you, along with Evans, as per General Connor's request," Commander Baron said, and that caused the soldier to face us fully, then I was stunned to see a young Michael Biehn looking at us with a steely expression in his eyes when I realized that I was staring at Kyle Reese himself as he crossed his arms and Commander Baron walked away after that.

"Okay, so you two can tell an infiltrator from one of us, now what else can either of you do?" Kyle asked us and I knew that he wanted to hear what we could do so that we wouldn't be a waste of his time.

"Well, I'm pretty good with a rifle and I'm very resourceful so if you need an extra shooter and someone who can think fast on his feet, then I'm your man," I answered as I put up a stoic front and Kyle stared at me with a hard expression for a short time before he nodded in satisfaction.

"So, you're a marksman and you can adapt under pressure? Good, we need sharp eyes out there, and having someone who's pretty resourceful is good as well," Kyle said when he looked at Jacob and asked, "Now, how about you, Rivers?"

"I've become an expert in stealth and I've gotten good at hacking so I can get into any of Skynet's outposts without drawing attention and can get through any security doors," Jacob replied and Kyle also stared at him for a short while until he nodded.

"Good, having someone who can get us past Skynet's security and get into heavily guarded locations without alerting Skynet will help so check the supply crate and gather the necessary equipment since it looks like we're moving out soon," Kyle told us and I looked thoughtful since there was something that was on my mind.

"Before we do that, is it alright if we ask a few questions first?" I asked and Kyle looked at me.

"Sure, but make it fast since we need to move out soon," Kyle replied and Jacob nodded.

"What do you think about the team?" Jacob inquired.

"I've been working with Corporal Ferro for years so she's a good fighter but as for you two and Evans, I'll wait until I know you better but I'll be postponing the introductions until we're on the road," Kyle answered and I nodded.

"Alright, so what's your opinion about this mission?" I asked and Kyle started showing a sour expression.

"Under normal circumstances, I would say that the mission is straightforward but I would've appreciated some advanced warning first," Kyle admitted irritably.

"But these aren't normal circumstances," Jacob pointed out and Kyle nodded in agreement.

"Nothing is normal when General Connor's involved, something you two and Evans will learn very soon," Kyle stated and I knew what he meant by that.

"That reminds me, why do you think John Connor selected us for this mission?" I questioned since it seemed a bit weird that I would also be chosen for this mission, then I started pondering if John knew something I didn't since everything he does has a reason.

"He must have his reasons, always did and to be perfectly honest, I've learned a long time ago not to ask too many questions," Kyle said and Jacob looked puzzled by that.

"Why?" Jacob asked.

"He's got this uncanny ability to put the right people in the right places at the right time, which is a great skill to have when you're the leader of the entire resistance so when John Connor vouches for you, then I already know you'll do your job well," Kyle explained and I nodded.

"Good to know, now we'll get what we need from the supply chest so we'll let you know when we're ready to move out," I stated and the conversation ended there as Jacob and I walked away from Kyle and started to make our way to the supply crate so that we could get what we need when we were about to pass Commander Baron, who was sitting on a table.

"Rivers, Sullivan, a word with you two," Commander Baron spoke up, prompting us to head over to her.

"Need something, commander?" Jacob asked and Commander Baron shook her head.

"No, but it seems like you two have been appointed a special task and alongside Kyle Reese no less so just you both know, regardless of what happens, there's always a place for you two here," Commander Baron told us and I was confused since she wasn't the type to say things like that so something must be on her mind.

"Is there something wrong, commander?" I asked and Commander Baron sighed.

"Every once in a while, an assignment comes along that nothing can prepare you for and I fear that this might be such an assignment, so I hope that General Connor made a wise decision in selecting you two for this mission.

Besides that, I need all the bodies I can get here so any other questions?" Commander Baron asked and Jacob nodded.

"Who's Evans? I've never seen him before," Jacob pointed out with a puzzled look.

"He joined us not too long ago, the man's a survivor from another division just like you and he's a sharpshooter like Sullivan here so that's all I know since he doesn't talk much, which I appreciate," Commander Baron replied and I frowned.

"Can we trust him?" I questioned.

"He could ask me the same question about you two so if either of you are concerned about it, then you can always take it up with General Connor since he appointed him to this mission in the first place," Commander Baron stated.

"Okay, so what can you tell us about Kyle Reese?" Jacob inquired.

"He's General Connor's right-hand man, can't blame him for wanting to keep Reese close since he's a great soldier, completely devoted to the cause," Commander Baron replied.

"I see, did you two ever serve together?" I asked and Commander Baron nodded.

"Yes, we both used to serve under Perry and back then, we were naive enough to think that T-600 rubbers were as bad as things could get so good times, then I became the field commander and he joined the North Division after that.

Now, we only catch up with each other between missions since he's too busy doing special tasks for General Connor," Commander Baron explained.

"One last question, what's the status of that second-generation plasma rifle?" Jacob inquired.

"Alvin is still working on it," Commander Baron answered and I hummed in thought.

"So, there's a chance he'll have it ready before our return," I said and Commander Baron shook her head.

"I wouldn't hold your breath since our professor doesn't have a stellar record when it comes to reprogramming Skynet technology and we're still looking for a spider scout he lost somewhere in the shelter," Commander Baron said with a frown.

"What if he can't hack that plasma rifle?" Jacob questioned.

"Look, I don't even want to think about the alternative at this point," Commander Baron stated and I assumed that she wanted to drop the matter so we saluted her and continued heading to the supply chest.

We took a look through it and gathered what we needed, such as pipe bombs, can grenades, a few termination knives, a couple of med-kits, some ammo, and MREs and water since it sounded like we'll be going on a long journey so I wanted to make sure we were prepared as we closed the supply chest and made our way back to Kyle.

"All set? Rivers, we're moving out so open the gate," Kyle ordered, prompting Jacob to head over to the makeshift gate and he opened it up for us until Kyle signaled for Evans and Ferro to come over when we all piled into the car and Kyle started backing us out of the compound, turning around and we started to make our journey to Northridge.

The drive to Northridge was silent for the most part as we had left the shelter and I was currently watching ruins and old wrecked cars passing by as the drive was taking a few hours, though I didn't take my eyes off of our surroundings just in case.

Back in my world, I would've started playing games on my smartphone to pass the time if a drive took this long but I was now more concerned with keeping an eye open for any of Skynet's troops and I didn't see any, which wasn't a surprise since most of the machines usually patrolled deeper into the destroyed cities for humans that were using as cover.

"We're approaching Northridge," Ferro spoke up and I now knew where I had recognized her from since she was the young female soldier who got killed in the first flashback that was shown in the first movie, so I hoped that I would be able to save her from that fate as I turned my attention to Jacob and the others.

"Alright, it's a good time to bring everyone up to speed so listen up, this is a rescue mission and what we need to do is go in, secure the perimeter, and prepare for evacuation," Kyle said and I knew it couldn't be that simple.

"Sounds simple enough," I commented stoically.

"Yes, it's as simple as it gets but I don't want anyone to draw Skynet's attention because we're not prepared for that so we keep our heads down and evacuate those people to safety," Kyle stated.

"What if there's no one to evacuate?" Ferro asked.

"Care to elaborate, Corporal?" Kyle questioned as he sent her a frown.

"Outposts don't stay silent for that long so if no one's been reporting in, then I'd expect to find the remains of a massacre...sir," Ferro pointed out uneasily and I knew what she meant since an outpost doesn't just go dark like that unless something happened to it.

"I think introductions are in order so the eternal optimist sitting next to me is Cpl. Ferro, an explosives specialist. Sergeant Rivers, Sergeant Sullivan, and I have already been introduced so what about you, Evans? What's your story?" Kyle asked the large man to my left, who had been really quiet during the trip.

"I've read your file, so you're the sole survivor from the 113th, right?" Ferro questioned, only Evans didn't reply but I did see that what she said caught Kyle's attention.

"113th? I've heard about that so how'd you manage to escape?" Kyle inquired, only Evans didn't respond so I figured that he wasn't the type for conversation.

"Supposedly, he took down a T-800 with his bare hands," Ferro commented and my eyes widened at that since that couldn't be possible because I had to use stealth and two termination knives to kill a couple of T-800s, so a head-on fight against a T-800 would only get you killed because of how dangerous they are.

"That's impossible," Kyle stated, voicing exactly what I was thinking as he looked skeptical.

"That's what I'm saying," Ferro replied and I frowned thoughtfully since Evans shouldn't have been able to take down a T-800 with his bare hands, so it must be just rumors that she heard about from somewhere.

"Is it true? Did John Connor select us for this assignment?" Evans asked suddenly, startling me slightly since I wasn't expecting it but now that I think about it, his face, build, and voice were similar to a young Arnold Schwarzenegger so it had me on edge since the way he was acting reminded me of the infiltrator that was sent back in time to kill Sarah Connor.

"That's right," Kyle confirmed as he kept his eyes on the road.

"I'd like to meet him," Evans said and I sent him a look of suspicion since I wasn't sure if he could be trusted.

"Complete the mission and you just might, now we're getting close so get ready," Kyle said as I could see that we were approaching the neighborhood.

Kyle stopped the car and we all got out, continuing on foot and making our way through the ruins when Evans took up a sniper's perch, then I went with Jacob, Ferro, and Kyle before we took cover and kept an eye on the street ahead of us.

"Northridge is up ahead so give us a sit-rep, Evans," Kyle whispered as I aimed my rifle down the street.

"No signs of any resistance soldiers at the gate," Evans replied and I started looking pensive.

"I'm not liking this, something's wrong," I said quietly.

"Three T-600s approaching at one o'clock," Evans informed us and Ferro looked surprised to hear that.

"T-600s? They're still around?" Ferro wondered and I frowned since the T-600 series is now an obsolete design and that means Skynet hasn't bothered to give them orders to capture me, which means I'm gonna get shot at by them.

"Let's not get sloppy because we don't know what's behind that gate, and this is a Tech-Com mission so I want us to move fast and I want us to be efficient, understood?" Kyle told us sternly.

"Yes sir," I answered and so did Jacob and Ferro as I spotted the three T-600s coming into view, the large bulky machines wielding chainguns as they went out into the street.

"Now, let's clear the area so, Evans, you want to start us off?" Kyle suggested quietly.

"Affirmative," Evans replied and that was our cue.

"Everyone, on me!" Kyle ordered and we all ran out of cover and started going down to the street when one of the T-600s was hit by a plasma bolt from Evans' rifle, the machine getting destroyed and it caused the other two to fire their chainguns at us and Evans while bullets went flying.

The three of us took cover behind a couple of cars and returned fire as Evans assisted with his rifle when I popped up and blasted one of the T-600s in the head to destroy it as the other one was killed from a shot to the head as well by Evans, just before more T-600s started coming into view.

"More metals incoming!" I shouted as I blasted a couple of T-600s with a third one destroyed by Evans and two more taken down by Kyle, Ferro, and Jacob.

"Clear!" Jacob yelled.

"Ferro, Rivers, Sullivan, on me," Kyle ordered and we all moved out of cover before I spotted drones up ahead as they approached our location.

They started shooting at us and Evans took out most of them by shooting a gas canister, which destroyed some of the drones as the rest of us blasted the rest to pieces and we ran through the gate that led into the outpost when we encountered an armored spider and a few drones, as well as a couple of T-600s.

"Where the hell is everyone?! There's no one here, no bodies or anything!" Ferro exclaimed as we took cover to prevent ourselves from getting shot.

"I have no fucking clue, but we should worry about ourselves first!" I shouted as I lit a pipe bomb and threw it at the armored spider, the explosion destroying the armored spider and T-600s before we shot the drones and it was clear after that.

"We need to get to the basement since that's where they would've taken their stand so if anyone's still alive, they'll be there," Kyle said before we left cover and continued forward as I could see that the outpost was an old mall that was mostly rubble because of judgment day, though I spotted more machines down below and they fired at us.

"There's more of them here!" Ferro shouted and we all ran over to the railing to fire down at the armored spiders and T-600s, then I blasted a T-600 and tossed a pipe bomb at the others, the explosion taking out a couple before Jacob and Kyle destroyed the remaining T-600.

"Evans, you stay there and watch for reinforcements while the rest of us head downstairs!" Kyle ordered as we started running over to the stairs.

We started making our way down and headed over to the door that led to the basement, stacking up and getting ready before Kyle kicked the doors in and we headed inside when we got ambushed by two T-600s and quickly took care of them.

"And down they go!" Ferro cheered as we continued moving.

"Stay frosty, we don't want to shoot any friendlies," Kyle said as we started making our way to the stairs that were up ahead.

"If there are any friendlies left alive because the doors to the garage are wide open," Ferro pointed out and I knew that something wasn't right since there was no blood or bodies from what I could see, almost as if everyone left in a hurry while we made it down to the underground parking lot and were forced to use the cars as cover to avoid getting shot by a few T-600s.

"What the fuck is going on, Sgt. Reese?! Where the hell is everyone?!" I yelled as I popped up and destroyed a T-600 with a shot to the head.

"Let's clear the area first and then we'll figure it out later!" Kyle replied loudly as he and the others were taking care of the other machines.

Once the T-600s were destroyed, we were about to head over to the makeshift gate that was up ahead when it was bashed open and a T-600 with torn rubber skin came out and fired at us with its chaingun, forcing us to duck back into cover but a combined plasma fire from all of us destroyed the T-600 and I didn't hear anything else after that.

"All clear, thank god," I said as we all continued forward.

"Evans, how's it looking on your side?" Kyle inquired as we made our way to the gate.

"That's all of them," Evans replied over the radio.

"Then secure the perimeter," Kyle ordered as we entered the gate and I saw that there was nobody around, just empty beds and nothing else.

"This isn't right, it's like everyone here just up and vanished so what do we do now?" Jacob wondered as Kyle looked around with a frown on his scarred face.

"We need to report this so search the area for a radio station and keep your eyes open," Kyle instructed, and then I started looking around for the radio station.

There was nothing, no signs that any sort of fighting had broken out and that had me highly suspicious since an entire outpost doesn't just disappear like that so the people here were either forced to leave in a hurry and didn't have time to report it in or the machines took them away, both a possibility as I regrouped with Jacob.

"Adam, I'm not liking this," Jacob admitted and I nodded.

"Yeah, same here so keep your eyes open," I replied as I looked around with a hard expression.

We made our way back upstairs and started looking for the comms station as we didn't find it on the ground level, though I managed to locate a high-tech rifle that was hidden in an elevator and decided to keep it just in case as we made it up to the second floor and eventually found what used to be a cafeteria when I spotted what we were looking for and gestured for Jacob to come over.

"Comms? This should be it," Jacob muttered as he went to check on the radio and I went to contact Kyle.

"Sergeant, Rivers and I found a radio station upstairs," I informed Kyle and waited for his response.

"Good, we'll be up there momentarily," Kyle replied and it was quiet after that as Jacob and I waited for him and Ferro to show up.

It didn't take long for Kyle and Ferro to find us and Kyle started using the radio to contact Commander Baron so that he could report the situation to her, then he started speaking to the commander about what we've discovered and expressed his displeasure about the situation until he was finished soon after.

"I understand you're not happy with the situation but for now, you'll have to stay put...at least until I discuss your next move with General Connor so is that clear?" Commander Baron questioned and Kyle sighed.

"Yes commander, awaiting further instructions," Kyle replied reluctantly as he didn't look happy.

"Roger, over and out," Commander Baron said until she stopped contacting us and Kyle turned to look at us.

"Alright, it looks like we're turning in for the night and I understand that not everything went as planned today since there are still a lot of unanswered questions here, but for now, get some rest because tomorrow is when the real work starts," Kyle stated and Ferro nodded.

"Yes sir," Ferro responded and then Kyle went to look at me and Jacob.

"Rivers, Sullivan, do you two have a moment? I need to talk about your performance today," Kyle said and I nodded.

"Of course, sir," I replied.

"You two are very efficient and reliable, which is good since that will keep the other members of the team motivated and it hasn't been that way in a while, so I appreciate your contribution even more. Other than that, that's pretty much it so keep it up," Kyle said and while he didn't show it, I knew he was impressed and he wasn't an easy man to impress so that was good at least.

"Yes sir," Jacob replied before we walked away and I decided to get some sleep after that.

Chapter Text

I had gotten up the next morning and got my gear together, having one of the MREs for breakfast and I never thought that I would miss actual food since the MRE tasted bland but it did give me enough energy for today as I made my way to the radio station and met Jacob on the way there.

"Hey, how'd you sleep?" I greeted and Jacob sighed.

"As good as could be expected so let's report to Sgt. Reese," Jacob replied before we made our way into the comms station and I saw Kyle as he was studying a map of Northridge until he noticed us as we stood at attention.

"Sarge, any new orders from HQ?" I asked and Kyle shook his head.

"Not yet, we're on our own for now so I have Ferro searching for any intel we may have missed yesterday so we'll see what comes up," Kyle answered and that wasn't reassuring since I don't like to stay in one place for very long because of what's out there.

"What do we know so far, sir?" Jacob inquired curiously.

"I've been analyzing the intel that we have and I've got some theories, but nothing concrete so I'm curious to hear what you two think happened here. Where do you think those people went?" Kyle asked and I frowned thoughtfully as I thought about what could've happened here when I came up with one possible scenario.

"Well, judging by how there are no signs of fighting, all I can think of is that Skynet took them away and we do know that Skynet has created an infiltrator model so it's possible that more of them had been created and the people here were tricked into leaving by more infiltrator models disguised as resistance soldiers," I replied and Kyle nodded.

"That's what I've been thinking as well but until we can prove that, we need to gather more intel first before we can come to a definite conclusion of what happened here so we'll need to keep our eyes open for now.

Speaking of which, would you two mind checking on Ferro? I'm waiting for a status report from her," Kyle said and that caused me and Jacob to nod before we left the comms station.

"Adam, do you really think the people in this outpost were fooled into leaving by more infiltrators?" Jacob asked and I sighed.

"As Sgt. Reese said, we need more intel first before we can come to that conclusion but, to be honest, the thought of there being more infiltrators is fucking terrifying since one was pretty difficult to kill so I don't even want to imagine what an army of them could do," I admitted uneasily and Jacob nodded in agreement as we started making our way down the steps.

We started looking around for Ferro, though she wasn't in any of the old stores so I figured that she might be in the parking lot so we headed in that direction when we spotted Ferro trying to open a door near the stairwell that led to the parking lot, Ferro not having much success with getting the door open and cussing up a storm because of it.

"What's up?" Jacob inquired and Ferro sighed as she went to look at us.

"I'm trying to get inside the armory but I suck at this, and while I'd love to do it 'the usual way' and blow this door wide open, Sgt. Reese doesn't want us to make too much noise so can either of you help me?" Ferro requested and I saw that there was an electronic lock on the door so I couldn't pick it but then I recalled that Jacob had the hacking device so he could give it a try.

"Well, Sgt. Rivers is pretty good at hacking so he could get that door open for you," I offered and Jacob moved forward, prompting Ferro to move aside as Jacob went to take out the hacking device and he plugged it into the lock, then he got the door unlocked as it swung open.

"Nice job, Rivers," Ferro praised as I started to head inside the armory, only to see that the shelves were bare.

"Damn, there's nothing left in here so I guess it was too much to hope for that we would find a shitload of weapons and ammo left behind," I said as I looked around while resting my hands on my hips.

"Bummer, looks like I lost a bet," Ferro muttered and that caused me to look at her while Jacob looked confused.

"What do you mean by that?" Jacob asked.

"Evans has a theory that people here packed up and left and I didn't think much of it at first, but an empty armory is certainly a head-scratcher so I guess we need to keep looking and speaking of which, I'm supposed to do a sweep of the entire area but there's a back room on the ground floor that I couldn't get into because it was blocked by a bunch of stuff that I couldn't move.

If it's not too much trouble, could you guys get Evans and see if the three of you can move it?" Ferro suggested and I nodded.

"Sure, we'll let him know but there are a couple of things I want to know first so what's Sgt. Reese like? You've worked with him for a long time so I'm curious about your opinion of him," I said and Ferro looked surprised to hear that.

"You wanna know what Kyle Reese is like? Well, the most accurate description I can give about him is that he's like stone or steel, where pretty much nothing ever gets to him for better or worse," Ferro replied.

"What do you mean by that?" Jacob questioned and Ferro sighed.

"This is the first time we've been able to take a minute to ourselves since the failure of our last mission, you know? And he's been up all day, trying to figure out our next move so he's able to just disconnect and work himself tirelessly as if nothing happened, even if a lot of shit happened," Ferro said bitterly and I frowned thoughtfully.

"I don't know, maybe it's his own way of trying to deal with the loss of his men since shit like that affects people differently, though it must be nice to just switch off like that," I pointed out and Ferro let out a small laugh.

"Yeah, I wish I could do that since he seems untouchable so I wonder how he got to be that way...and here I am trying to hold it together thinking about the people we lost while doing a pretty shitty job at it.

Anyway, you wanted to know about Sgt. Reese, not me so that's what he's like," Ferro said.

"I'm curious, what's your opinion about this whole situation?" Jacob inquired and Ferro frowned.

"I think it's obvious something fucked up happened here and I'm just pissed at myself that I didn't see this coming," Ferro admitted with a sour expression.

"How so?" I questioned in confusion.

"Well, whenever Sgt. Reese gets a direct order from General Connor, something's off because I don't know what the deal is between them since they always keep their cards close," Ferro replied irritably.

"So, this happens a lot?" Jacob inquired and Ferro sighed.

"More than I'd like it to, that's for sure so I just wish Sgt. Reese included me since I'm always on these missions anyway," Ferro admitted and I sent her a look of sympathy.

"Well, I'm sure he has a reason for it so try not to let it get to you that much," I said as I patted her shoulder before Ferro sighed.

"I know...well, I'll see you guys later," Ferro told us and we nodded as we went to look for Evans.

"Rivers, Sullivan, report to the comms room when you two have a minute," Kyle said on the radio suddenly and I looked at Jacob.

"Well, we better get Evans and have him help us with that obstruction Ferro mentioned since I have a feeling Sgt. Reese isn't someone who likes having his time wasted," I commented and Jacob nodded in agreement as we went to look for Evans.

We started searching the former mall as I held a thoughtful frown, not sure what to make of Evans since he appeared to show all the signs of being an infiltrator but I wasn't sure if he was or just a big guy who was anti-social so all I have to do is keep an eye on him to see if he doesn't eat or drink while also checking to see if dogs react aggressively around him since those were two major things that would tell me if he was an infiltrator, though Jacob and I found the large man on the ground floor as he was busy working on the car and he saw us approaching him.

"Yeah?" Evans questioned stoically.

"Hey, Ferro mentioned there's a back room nearby that needs checking but it's blocked so can you help us? It shouldn't take long with the three of us working together to move the debris," Jacob said.

"Just let me know when," Evans replied and I couldn't help but feel uncomfortable around him since he reminded me of the infiltrator that tried to kill Jacob and capture me.

"So, do you think it's safe to stay here?" I inquired.

"That group of T-600s we destroyed yesterday is a discontinued infiltration unit since they tend to malfunction, which is why I doubt that they are still connected to Skynet to give out our location so we're safe here.

Having said that, I don't like the direction we're inching towards," Evans replied.

"You mean north?" Jacob questioned and Evans looked at him.

"Yeah," Evans answered.

"I'm curious, how did you know that we wouldn't find anything in that armory?" I asked.

"I've been trying to work on the car but the garage here is missing some tools and the only things still lying around here are what the protocol deems 'inessential equipment', the things that are supposed to be left behind during an evacuation.

Basically, those people were packed and ready to go," Evans explained and I couldn't argue with that logic.

"I see...anyway, we're ready so let's go see what's in that room," Jacob said and Evans nodded before he turned around and we started walking to where the blocked room was.

"So, is it true, what they said in the car? That you took down a terminator with your bare hands?" I questioned as we entered an old store.

"It's true," Evans replied stoically.

"How'd you do that? I didn't think it was possible that someone could do that," Jacob pointed out with a look of surprise.

"I was angry, now focus because we have a job to do," Evan stated and that didn't help lower my suspicions of him since attempting to take down a T-800 with your fists is completely suicidal.

Either way, we kept moving to the back and went down the hall as we passed a storage area before we soon arrived at a door that was blocked by a metal shelf that had different appliances on it so I studied it while we stopped in front of it.

"This is it," Evans confirmed and I nodded in response.

"Oh yeah, the three of us should be able to move this so let's get started," I said as I slung my rifle and so did Jacob as we were about to help Evans move the shelf, only he grabbed it and moved it out of the way by tipping it over by himself as my eyes widened at that.

"Holy shit," Jacob said while we gawked at Evans, who simply brushed off any dust that was on himself.

"I'm heading back so check what's inside," Evans said before he walked away and I immediately unslung my rifle, holding it close as I stared at Evans warily while Jacob also looked at the large man suspiciously.

"Jacob..." I trailed off and the man next to me nodded.

"Yeah, let's keep an eye on him for now while we carry out the mission," Jacob agreed before we turned to look at the door and I checked the handle, which was locked.

That prompted me to sling my rifle and I took out a lockpick, working on the lock and concentrating as I got the door open and we went inside to see what was in the room, then I saw a few metal scrap and electrical parts that were on the shelves that would be useful so we grabbed them and I continued to look around when I found what appeared to be a note on a small table and I read through it.

"Look at this, appears that there was someone who lived somewhere near the outpost and had explosives so it might be worth doing some recon while we're out there," I said as Jacob took a look at the note and we gazed at the map that was pinned to the wall in front of us.

"Maybe, though we should check in with Sgt. Reese and inform him about this," Jacob said and I nodded before reaching for my radio.

"Sarge, Rivers and I had found some intel regarding someone who used to live outside the shelter. Permission to follow up on the possible lead?" I inquired as I studied the map in front of me and Jacob.

"Permission granted, just remember that we don't want to alert Skynet to our presence here so I need you and Rivers to move undetected, not to mention that I still need you two to come and see me so head to the comms room," Kyle stated.

"Copy that," I replied before putting my radio away until Jacob and I left the room, making our way to the comms room and seeing Kyle waiting for us as I heard what appeared to be someone speaking on the radio.

"Sgt, what do you need us for?" Jacob asked and Kyle motioned his head at the large radio.

"Someone used an emergency broadcast system to deliver a message," Kyle told us and I hummed thoughtfully.

"Interesting, is it one of ours?" I inquired and Kyle shook his head.

"Judging by how inaccurate the message is, it's more likely sent by a civilian," Kyle replied and Jacob frowned.

"So, one of our missing residents?" Jacob questioned.

"That's what we'll need to figure out since it's our best lead so far," Kyle stated.

"Then we're moving out soon?" I asked and Kyle shook his head.

"No, I don't want us to move around in the daylight so we leave at dusk and one more thing, there's something else about that message that concerns me because it's been sent from somewhere inside Bakersfield," Kyle said and that made me tense up while Jacob also looked concerned.

"Isn't that just on the edge of the annihilation line?" Jacob inquired and Kyle nodded grimly.

"That's right...we're moving out as soon as it gets dark so make sure to get some rest since you'll need it," Kyle told us, which prompted me and Jacob to leave after that.

"Jacob, we should probably look into that hermit's place near here before we get some rest since there's a good chance he might've left something behind that could tell us what happened here," I pointed out and Jacob nodded.

"Agreed, though we should be careful once we're out there since Skynet isn't supposed to know we're here," Jacob told me, just as we made our way to where the front gate was and got our rifles ready.

I opened the gate and let Jacob go out first with his rifle up, then I followed him and shut the gate before we moved up ahead and suddenly stopped at the sight of a spider scout scurrying down a path to the right that wasn't blocked by debris, making me shiver since I hated those little metal bastards because of their tasers hurting like hell and that was one experience that I didn't want to go through again.

I knew that Jacob and I had to use stealth this time since Kyle didn't want to alert Skynet and I was perfectly fine with that so we went down a path to our left and made sure to avoid the spider scouts that were patrolling the ruins when we discovered a path that led down.

Jacob and I kept walking while keeping our eyes open when we saw that the path led into an underground storage area but it was the lasers that made us stop since I knew those were trip mines, which means that we would have to be very careful.

'Jesus, looks like this hermit wasn't taking any chances,' I thought as I studied the lasers with a thoughtful expression.

I could see that there were gaps that were big enough for us to get through so I went first, making sure to disable the mines and I put them in my backpack since I could find a use for them later as Jacob followed me in once it was clear.

I kept my eyes and ears open while we searched the area but there wasn't anyone around and from what I could tell, nobody had been in here for a while so the hermit must've either been forced to leave the place or he decided to pack up and move on, then we entered a large room filled with empty shelves while there was a large grate on the floor until a box that was lying on top of it was knocked aside and something darted right at me, making me let out a startled yelp as I aimed at whatever it was when I saw that it was a large rat scurrying past us and I let out a shaky sigh.

"You okay?" Jacob asked while I was breathing heavily.

"Yeah...thought it was a spider scout for a second, nearly shot the bastard though," I said as I calmed down and Jacob smirked.

"Feeling a little twitchy today, huh?" Jacob remarked and I sent him an unamused expression.

"Whatever, just don't tell Jennifer and the others once we get back to the bunker because she and Erin definitely won't let me hear the end of it for weeks," I grumbled and Jacob chuckled while we started to search the room.

There wasn't much left and the shelves were bare but I did find what appeared to be a page from some kind of diary and I started reading it so from what I could tell, the hermit wasn't all that stable as the page mostly talked about his rat named Cindy, the same one Jacob and I probably encountered but then one section caught my attention as it talked about how the missing residents from the outpost had been evacuated by people that were wearing resistance uniforms.

"What'd you find there?" Jacob inquired curiously as he came over to see what I was reading.

"It's a page from the hermit's diary and it says here that the people at the outpost had been evacuated by resistance soldiers," I replied as I showed Jacob the page, which he took and read through it until he looked puzzled.

"This doesn't make any sense, resistance soldiers came to evacuate them? We need to report this to Reese," Jacob told me and I nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, looks like my theory about infiltrators dressed in resistance uniforms taking away the people that lived at the outpost is looking more and more likely," I said just before Jacob reached for his radio and contacted Kyle.

"Sarge, we found a note from someone who witnessed Northridge being evacuated," Jacob informed him and Kyle was silent for a short time.

"By what appeared to be resistance soldiers?" Kyle questioned with a slight tone in his voice that I couldn't figure out.

"Yeah, that's right," I confirmed after taking Jacob's radio so that I could respond.

"I see...that's what I was afraid of but either way, good work because now that we're certain of what happened here, there's no other choice but to follow the signal. Over and out," Kyle said until he cut off contact with us and I handed Jacob his radio.

"Hey, you getting the feeling that we might be walking into an ambush?" I asked as we made our way out of the underground storage area.

"Yeah, I'm getting the exact same feeling," Jacob agreed uneasily as we moved through the ruins, making our way back to the outpost and getting some rest so that we would be alert tonight.

Hours later, I couldn't sleep as I was completely on edge and moved around in my cot to try and get comfortable, then I just stared up at the ceiling lost in thought as I had the feeling that something was wrong since resistance protocol was to notify command if an outpost was being evacuated, but that didn't happen and chills ran down my spine at the thought of how those resistance soldiers mentioned in the diary page were possibly infiltrators that tricked the former residents into leaving so that it would be easier to capture them.

One infiltrator was bad enough, but an army of them would be a nightmare to deal with so I didn't know what to do because dealing with one infiltrator took a lot of ammo to kill it and I shivered at the thought of an army of them invading our outposts and anyplace else that the resistance has set up shop, though it was not until nightfall that Jacob had come and informed me that Kyle was waiting for us and we joined up with him and the others quickly.

"We've received permission from HQ to follow the signal so our next stop is Bakersfield, which is two hours away from the nearest resistance outpost," Kyle told us as we were heading to the car.

"So, if it gets too heated, there's no chance of support?" Ferro asked dubiously.

"That's right, does anyone have a problem with that?" Kyle questioned.

"No, sir," Evans replied and I wasn't keen at the thought of us being out there alone and not having any support if the shit were to hit the fan, though we'll have to take what we can get so I hope things don't go to hell while we're out there.

"I've got one thing, Sarge," Ferro spoke up with a glint in her eyes.

"Ferro?" Kyle inquired and Ferro smirked.

"Shotgun!" Ferro spoke and I sent her a dry look.

"Seriously? Are you five years old?" I questioned.

"What? I'm taking shotgun so tough shit," Ferro remarked wryly and I shook my head.

"Shotgun? I only brought my rifle," Evens spoke up and I sent him a weird look.

"Do you not know what an expression is, Evans? Seriously, maybe you should find a dictionary or something," I commented while looking at him with a bemused expression, just as we made it to the car.

"Alright, let's move out," Kyle said and we all piled into the car.

'Here we go, right into the mouth of hell itself,' I thought as Kyle started the car and we began our journey to Bakersfield, following a tense silence after that as I let out a quiet shaky breath and steeled myself for what might be waiting for us at our next destination.

Chapter Text

It took a couple of hours, but we finally arrived at our location as we got out of the car and took up a standard formation up ahead while we crouched down, then we all started keeping an eye out while Kyle gazed around with hardened eyes until he turned his attention to us.

"This is it, the message was sent from somewhere around here but it wasn't accurate enough to give us the exact location, so to cover more ground, we'll be splitting into two groups. I'll be spotting for Rivers and Sullivan so, Evans, you spot for Ferro," Kyle instructed as Ferro looked thoughtful.

"What exactly are we looking for, sir?" Ferro inquired.

"Any signs of civilian activity. No one's been in the area for a long time so report anything you see, understood?" Kyle told us, causing the rest of us to send him responses of confirmation.

"Rules of engagement, sir?" Evans asked stoically.

"Fire at will, now let's move out," Kyle replied and with that said, we all started to make our way into the ruins with Kyle, Jacob, and I heading in one direction while Ferro and Evans went in another until the three of us soon went down a bunch of debris and Kyle looked at us.

"Rivers, Sullivan, let's go," Kyle ordered quietly and I nodded.

"Understood, moving out now," I responded, being just as quiet since there was no telling how many of Skynet's troops were in this area so we started moving forward.

"Where do we start?" Jacob asked as we quietly jogged down a path surrounded by debris and rubble on our left and right.

"There used to be a non-military checkpoint and an old command center in this area, so that's where I want you and Sullivan to go first," Kyle replied while we continued moving and I nodded in response.

We stayed on the move while passing long-destroyed vehicles and what used to be buildings that were completely collapsed, more signs of how judgment day was so devastating back then because of the nukes leveling everything and vaporizing those who were right in the thick of it, then I was shaken out of my thoughts when I spotted two patrolling T-800s that were up ahead as they started approaching our location.

"Terminators, 12 o'clock," Kyle whispered, prompting all three of us to take cover before we were spotted.

"What are your orders, sarge?" I inquired quietly as I got my rifle ready in the event of a firefight.

"We could let them pass or take them out, your call," Kyle said, directing the last part at Jacob as well so the latter looked at me for confirmation.

"Let's take them out, make sure they won't be a problem in the future," I suggested quietly and Jacob nodded.

With that said, we popped out of cover and opened fire on the two T-800s as they never stood a chance against the three of us, then we continued down the path and passed the T-800s that had been reduced to scrap because of our combined efforts.

"Nice and easy," Kyle said while we continued jogging when he signaled for Jacob and me to stop and he gestured at a tall building that looked slightly intact.

"The building over there is a good vantage point, so I'll be able to navigate you two from there but are you sure you'll be able to do this by yourselves?" Kyle asked us and Jacob nodded.

"Yes sir," Jacob replied as we moved to a crumbling wall that had two doors, then Kyle stopped so that he could look at us and we did the same.

"Okay then, just keep your radios close," Kyle instructed as he walked over to the doors and shot the lock off, then he opened the doors and that allowed me and Jacob to walk through until we entered another section of the ruined city and I looked at him.

"Okay, you head down one path and I'll down another so radio me once you find something," I said and Jacob nodded.

After that, we went our separate ways and I continued down the path to my right before I was forced to take cover when two armored drones started showing up, and I stayed hidden since I didn't have Jacob and Kyle to assist me this time so I would have to be tactical about this if I didn't want to get spotted, then I swore under my breath when I caught a glimpse of an aerial flying past my location nearby.

"HK Aerial flying by," I informed Kyle quietly.

"We don't have enough firepower to destroy it so keep an eye on it because if its searchlight spots you, you're out of luck," Kyle warned as I saw the armored drones flying away and moved out of cover.

"Will do," I replied and continued moving.

"By the way, I'm at the top and I can see that the HK could be a problem," Kyle added and I sighed.

"Yeah, would be nice to find a way to take it out so that it'll stop being a problem," I commented while quickly heading down a street, moving through the ruins when I went down a path to my right and spotted a few of Skynet's troops that were nothing more than scrap and figured out what I was heading into.

"Hey, I found something interesting so it looks like this is where Skynet dumps its malfunctioning units," I spoke up to inform Kyle of what I'd found.

"See if you can scavenge anything useful, just keep your eyes open since some of them might not be offline but I've noticed that there's a Skynet antenna not far from your position so I think that HK is part of its surveillance, which is why it keeps popping up," Kyle told me and I hummed thoughtfully as I started searching through the machine graveyard.

"I see, anything we can do about it?" I asked while finding more ammo for my rifle and pocketing it.

"It's too dangerous since these types of facilities usually have their generators deep underground so, first, you'd need a way to get down there," Kyle replied and I frowned.

"In other words, I'm gonna need a rope then," I remarked dryly as I stayed on the move.

"Sullivan, I don't think you're hearing me but, technically, you would need a rope," Kyle said and I sighed.

"Sarge, I know it's dangerous but if I can take out that antenna, it would make our lives so much easier in the long run," I pointed out logically.

"Okay, just don't be reckless since I've already lost enough men out here and don't need you to add to the body count," Kyle stated with an edge in his tone and I grimaced.

It probably wasn't a good idea to get on his nerves like that since Kyle had a short temper because of his hellish experiences while growing up in this horrible environment, but I shook my head and focused on the task at hand as I soon spotted a building up ahead that probably had a rope or something I could use.

I quickly took cover when I spotted two T-800s patrolling around the building while I think I could see a third one inside that was guarding the entrance, then I scowled since that was going to make things harder for me.

I knew that going into a head-on fight was suicide so I had to play this smart and luring them away one by one would make it easier since they weren't that bright, now I nodded to myself and went to pick up a rock before tossing it.

The rock hit a piece of sheet metal and that caused a loud bang, getting the attention of one T-800 and I ducked into cover while taking out a termination knife while the T-800 passed my hiding spot and it started scanning the area in front of it.

I snuck up behind it and took it out before looking to see if I was seen yet, then I let out a sigh of relief when I saw that the two T-800s hadn't noticed a thing and the next one that was still outside had its back turned so this allowed me to deal with that one as well.

Pretty soon, I had taken care of both T-800s and went into the building before I started searching the place for anything that could be useful, not having much luck so far but I did find an old memo that was for all staff of Cyberdyne Systems and how Miles Dyson would be carrying out a motivational speech on August 18 because of the company experiencing public scrutiny.

I put the memo down and frowned as I started feeling sorry for Miles Dyson since the poor bastard had no idea what his creation was going to unleash in this timeline or that he was basically responsible for the deaths of 3 billion people, though I had to stay focused since getting distracted in this place would get me killed.

I continued looking for anything useful and didn't find anything yet but when I entered a room, I was taken aback to find some rope that was on the floor and I went to pick it up before examining it, seeing that it looked good enough to be used for the entrance to the Skynet facility.

'Damn, just what are the fucking chances of me finding rope this quickly?' I thought as I looked thoughtful, but I shook my head and went to put the rope in my backpack.

"Sarge, I found some rope," I told Kyle while zipping up my backpack and putting it back on.

"So you're really gonna go through with this? Word of warning, get yourself some sound decoys since the perimeter around the antenna is littered with silverfish" Kyle said as I made my way out of the room.

"Good to know, so where should I find some?" I inquired as I stopped at the front opening and peered around for any enemy contact.

"I have eyes on a junkyard that's close by so if you need scrap metal to craft sound decoys, then that's where you'll find it," Kyle replied and I nodded.

"Copy that, heading out now," I said while heading out of the store and making my way down the street as I kept my eyes and ears open.

It took a little bit, but I managed to find an old workbench and some scrap before crafting a few sound decoys that'll come in handy once I make it to the antenna, though it didn't take long for me to see the antenna in question that was off in the distance.

"Okay, got eyes on the antenna," I notified Kyle while using my goggles to recon the area.

"Hacking it will grant us control over those surveillance turrets, which are equipped with a second-generation plasma rifle," Kyle explained and I let out a quiet whistle.

"Yeah, that would be strong enough to bring down an HK and it's a good thing Jacob taught me a little bit of hacking a while ago so I'm good on that front," I remarked while putting away my goggles.

"Exactly, now stay alert," Kyle said before I stopped talking to him and considered my options.

I frowned at the number of silverfish and patrolling T-600s so this won't be easy but with the sound decoys, that should take care of the silverfish, and then I'll take out the T-600s so now that I had a plan, I went to prep the sound decoys and tossed them throughout different locations up ahead.

As I expected, the decoys worked like a charm but what I wasn't expecting was for the T-600s also heading to the decoys but I wasn't complaining since the silverfish blew up and also destroyed the T-600s so now I had a clear path to the antenna.

I couldn't see a way to get into the facility but I looked around either way and found an opening and went through it when I spotted a way to get inside that required me to use the rope I had in my backpack, then I got out the rope and tied it to a section above the pit so now I had a way in.

"Okay, heading into the facility now," I informed Kyle as I slung my rifle.

"Alright, now we'll lose comms once you get down there so good luck," Kyle said and I sighed.

"Understood, I'll need it," I replied as I went to grab the rope and started rappelling down it, descending into the darkness below.

After a short while, I finally made it to the bottom and unslung my rifle before aiming down the corridor in front of me, not seeing anything up ahead but I still had to be extremely cautious since I didn't have Jacob and Kyle with me so the smallest mistake might get me captured by Skynet and I really didn't want to find out what it had planned for me.

I moved forward while keeping my rifle up and peered around corners before soon coming across a highly advanced door up ahead and a vent on the right when the door slid open and I heard familiar metallic footsteps, making me widen my eyes in alarm and I ran over to the vent before crawling inside.

'Jesus Christ, that was close,' I thought as I began to crawl to god knows where

I slowly moved through the vent as I passed a grate and spotted a T-800 patrolling down the corridor I used to be in so it was a good thing I ducked into the vent just in time or that would not have ended well for me since I didn't have anyone to back me up in this hostile place.

Either way, I made it to the other end of the vent and could see that I was in the room on the other side of that door from earlier, quickly taking cover when I spotted a turret so I had to be careful and not let it see me as I managed to get behind it and take out my own hacking device.

I plugged it into the turret and made sure to stay hidden as I focused on hacking into the turret, then I was done and unplugged the device before looking around and seeing another vent until I went through that one and made it into another area of the facility.

There were two T-800s and a turret so that'll make things a little more challenging but if I can hack the turret, then it'll be able to cover me while I take care of the mainframe of this place so I studied the T-800s patrol patterns and came up with an idea.

I waited until I had an opening and quickly moved to the turret, using my hacking device to reprogram it into an ally, and ducked into cover just as the turret started firing at the T-800s and rendered them into scrap after a short firefight.

Now that that was taken care of, I made my way over to the mainframe of the facility and plugged the device into the large computer when I started to hack into it, which was surprisingly easy so I was successful and went to overload the systems.

I knew that I did not want to be in this room once the generators exploded so I quickly unplugged the device and started running as I started to hurry to where I rappeled in, running as fast as I could while I saw that the allied turret in the first room had taken care of the last T-800 so that was one less worry I had to deal with.

I made it to the rope just as I heard a large explosion so I knew it wouldn't be long until Skynet sent in reinforcements to investigate what was going on, so I grabbed the rope and started climbing up to the surface when I finally made it and headed out of the facility.

"Reporting back, the generator has been destroyed," I told Kyle as I jogged away from the facility, hearing the antenna starting to blow up in multiple explosions.

"Move back, Sullivan! The antenna is gonna blow!" Kyle warned me urgently and that prompted me to start sprinting just as the antenna blew up in one major explosion that caused me to duck my head and dive into cover as debris rained down from the sky.

"Holy shit, that flash of light was you, Sullivan?! Are we trying to destroy Skynet?! I thought this was just a rescue mission!" Ferro exclaimed in disbelief on the radio as I coughed and fanned away any clouds of dirt that were around me.

"Apparently, not for Sullivan," Kyle replied as I got out of cover.

"Evans, we gotta step it up," Ferro stated and I looked at what used to be the antenna and let out a whistle at the amount of destruction I caused.

"I appreciate keeping the morale up, Sullivan," Kyle told me and I started moving away from the area quickly.

"Yeah, though I need to get the fuck out of here since this is going to cause a shitload of attention," I pointed out grimly as I imagined dozens of Skynet's troops were heading this way.

"Are you okay though, Adam?" Jacob asked and I sighed.

"Yeah, not the first time something blew up near me and I doubt that'll be the last," I remarked as I started making my way to one of the two objectives.

"Okay, be careful," Jacob said and it was radio silence after that.

I kept moving through the ruins as I avoided patrolling machines and stayed on the move until I found an entrance to a subway, and even though I should head to one of the objectives, it wouldn't hurt to check out the subway since there might be something useful so I headed down the steps and started searching the abandoned train cars when I found a grenade launcher with ammo for it and my eyes widened considerably.

"Hell yeah, found a grenade launcher," I told Kyle as I put the grenade launcher and the ammo for it in my backpack.

"Now we've got a fighting chance against those HKs," Kyle replied as I put my backpack on.

"Yeah, though there's not a lot of ammo so I should use it sparingly," I stated while leaving the train car.

After leaving the subway, I continued to make my way to my objective while keeping my eyes and ears open for any signs of Skynet troops, though I managed to avoid them most of the time when I eventually came across what used to be a small store and I searched through it until I inhaled sharply when I found an RPG and some rocket ammo.

'Jesus Christ, is that a fucking RPG?! What the hell is one doing out here?!' I thought in shock and disbelief.

Nevertheless, I wasn't complaining about discovering such a find since this would definitely give me an edge against HK tanks or aerials so I went to grab it, lifting it with a grunt since it was heavy but I managed to make room in my backpack for it and the rocket ammo.

I left the crumbling building and continued to make my way to my objective, lugging my backpack since it was now heavy and full because of the extra weight but the advantages against two HK models more than made up for it now as I kept moving when I spotted what appeared to be a Skynet facility that was nearby.

"What the hell is that place?" I wondered as I made sure to get into cover and scope it out.

"From what I can tell, it's some sort of refueling station so if you're up to it, you could try sabotaging it since I'm sure Ferro, Evans, and Rivers would appreciate that," Kyle spoke up and I chuckled.

"Well, I'll definitely have no trouble taking care of that place since I just found a fucking rocker launcher and ammo for it," I replied with a look of anticipation.

"You're shitting me, how the hell did you find an RPG of all things?" Ferro questioned in bewilderment.

"It was in an old store, guess the person who used to be in there was keeping it for something big but since the place didn't look like anyone had been living in it for a while, the poor bastard either died or was captured and sent to a Skynet camp," I theorized and then Jacob hummed thoughtfully.

"Just be careful with that since it packs a punch," Jacob told me and I sighed.

"Will do," I said and started making my way to the refueling station.

I approached the refueling station and could see that I would have to hack the door to get in so I used my hacking device to accomplish that, the keypad being a little bit more challenging than the mainframe but I succeeded and found myself inside the fueling station.

I made my way through the refueling station while avoiding the T-800s that were patrolling the area and I ensured that I hacked the turrets to make my life easier as they took care of the T-800s, then I eventually found the mainframe that was on the second level and hacked it before overloading its systems, prompting me to run as fast as I could until I made it out of out the refueling station and it blew up.

"Okay, refueling station is taken care of," I told Kyle while moving away from what was left of the Skynet facility.

"Great job, that will slow them down substantially," Kyle replied as I continued my way to my main objective.

I noticed that I was close to the command center so I made my way there and walked for a bit until I could see it up ahead as two T-600s were patrolling the building, then I stayed quiet as I snuck up and took them out one by one with termination knives before I went into the building.

"I'm in the command center," I informed Kyle while looking around and seeing old desks and filing cabinets, also noting how it had used to be an old TV station that once was an old military outpost.

"Good, take a look around and see if you can find anyone," Kyle instructed and I began my search of the place.

I searched the first floor and didn't find anything apart from scrap that I could use for later and went up the stairs to investigate the second floor, not finding any signs of life so far as I checked the second floor and decided to make my way up the steps again.

"Sullivan here, not finding any signs of life so far and it looks like this place used to be an old TV station, seeing a lot of broadcast equipment here," I reported to Kyle once I made it to the third floor.

"Makes sense, so someone used it to send that message to us," Kyle said and I hummed thoughtfully.

"Yeah, though they're not here so I'll look around and see if I can find any clue that could tell us where they went," I replied as I continued searching.

I kept taking a look around but didn't find anything until I started searching the last room for any signs of who used to be here, then I found what appeared to be a note and read through it when I narrowed my eyes since its contents appeared to be a hidden message of some kind so I filed it away for later.

"There's nothing here so whoever sent us that message left recently," I notified Kyle and he hummed thoughtfully.

"There's still the other location to check so pick up whatever might be useful and see if you can regroup with Sgt. Rivers there," Kyle said and I proceeded to take one last look throughout the building until I started to make my way down the stairs.

"Watch out, hostiles approaching the building," Kyle warned and I swore under my breath as I took out a few mines and started placing them at strategic locations.

After that, I took cover and heard the sounds of metallic footsteps entering the building when explosions started happening below because of the mines, then I popped out of cover and aimed over the railing before shooting at a couple of T-800s that hadn't been destroyed by the mines, reducing them to scrap before they could get a chance to retaliate when I heard the sound of an aerial arriving.

'A fucking aerial?! Shit, just my goddamn luck,' I thought irritably as I hurried down the stairs when I remembered the RPG I had in my backpack.

I now had a chance against the flying HK so I removed the RPG from my backpack and loaded it when I peered outside and saw it hovering near the building and shining its searchlight down on it, then I ran out and aimed the RPG at the aerial and fired a rocket at it, the recoil knocking me to the ground as the rocket destroyed the right engine and the aerial started spinning out of control until it crash-landed somewhere nearby while it exploded as I was stunned that I took down a fucking HK aerial.

"Holy shit, was that you, Sullivan?!" Ferro questioned in shock while I stood up and I shook my head as I reached for my radio.

"Yeah, a damn aerial tried to get the jump at me but I took it down with the RPG I found earlier so Commander Baron is not going to believe this when we get back," I replied as I was still wrapping my head around the fact that I took down a highly dangerous killing machine.

"Yeah, she might give you a medal for it so nice work, Sullivan," Ferro told me as I put the RPG back in my backpack and started to make my way to the other location.

It took me a while as I dealt with other machines but I got close to the civilian checkpoint and could see Jacob as he was crouched and doing recon on the path that would lead us to the checkpoint as I got down on one knee next to him while keeping my rifle up.

"Hey, any signs of life?" I questioned quietly and Jacob shook his head.

"It's all quiet, though I heard you took down an aerial so that's impressive since not a lot of people can do that," Jacob complimented and I chuckled.

"Yeah, though it was luck more than anything else since I wouldn't have been able to do that if I hadn't found that RPG," I pointed out and Jacob nodded in agreement.

"True, so we should report to Sgt. Reese now that we've regrouped," Jacob stated and I reached for my radio.

"Sarge, I've regrouped with Rivers and we are close to the checkpoint," I informed Kyle while Jacob and I kept an eye open for any signs of Skynet's troops.

"Understood, though it's out of my line of sight so I won't be able to help you two when you enter that building," Kyle told us just as I spotted a T-800 exiting the building,

"Shit, the building's compromised!" Jacob exclaimed and we acted quickly by blasting the T-800 to scrap.

"Clear!" I yelled while quickly aiming around just in case that wasn't the only T-800 that was nearby.

"Sir, we'd like to proceed forward since we need to be sure," Jacob requested as I sent Jacob a nod to let him know that we were clear.

"Okay, you and Sullivan be careful, Rivers," Kyle warned as Jacob and I stood up and started to make our way to the checkpoint.

"Will do," I responded while Jacob and I started to enter the building by going down the stairs.

We entered the basement level and headed down the hallway while I held up a fist when I picked up the sound of another T-800 walking around, just as it entered the hallway from the room at the far end of the corridor and we quickly took care of it until we went to the room where it came from and didn't see any signs of life.

"Sarge, we don't have eyes on anyone so this place is empty just like the command center," I told Kyle and he was silent for a little bit until he responded.

"I see...take a look around and see if you and Rivers can find something useful," Kyle ordered.

"Copy that," I said, then Jacob and I started searching the checkpoint and didn't find much of anything until Jacob picked something up from a table and waved at me to come over.

"Hey, check this out," Jacob said as I walked over to him and could see that he was holding what appeared to be a note so I looked through it and frowned when I saw that it was similar to the note I found back at the command center.

"Interesting, I found a similar encoded message back at the command center so maybe someone is trying to lead us somewhere," I theorized as Kyle started speaking on our radios.

"Evans, how's it looking on your end?" Kyle inquired.

"We just noticed some movement so someone or something was heading your way, though we lost sight of it close to the cemetery," Evans replied as Jacob and I started to leave the checkpoint.

"Cemetary? Okay, I see it...Rivers, Sullivan, it's close to where you're at so head there immediately," Kyle instructed us as we left the checkpoint.

"Got it, heading there now," Jacob responded as we started to make our way to the cemetery.

I handed the grenade launcher and the ammo for it off to Jacob and he later used it on a group of T-800s so it was a damn good thing I found it and the RPG earlier since they'll make our lives so much easier on this mission but it didn't take long for us to find the cemetery and I saw that the front gate appeared to have been blown inward from an explosion of some kind.

"Arrived at the cemetery, looks like somebody or something breached the gate," I informed Kyle as Jacob and I raised our rifles.

"Got it, approach with caution," Kyle told us just as Jacob and I cautiously entered the cemetery.

We kept our eyes and ears open as we moved forward and slowly aimed our rifles around, encountering T-800s with flamethrowers and shot the fuel tanks on their backs to take care of them, then we arrived at a mausoleum and went inside it until we took care of a T-800 and I sighed when I didn't see anything.

"Sgt, there's no one here so Evans must've spotted a terminator," I told Kyle with a hint of disappointment in my voice and Kyle sighed.

"Alright, Sullivan, time to pack up and go so you and Rivers check if there's anything we can use and regroup on me," Kyle replied just as coughing suddenly broke out from one of the nearby coffins, prompting Jacob and me to quickly aim at it.

"Wait, we hear something and it's coming from a coffin," Jacob whispered as we slowly started to approach the coffin.

"Be careful," Kyle warned quietly as Jacob and I quietly moved up to the coffin, then we sent each other a nod before I slung my rifle and grabbed the lid before opening the coffin and saw an old man hiding inside, the old man holding his hands up when he saw us aiming at him.

"Don't shoot, don't shoot!" the old man exclaimed in alarm as we gestured for him to get out nice and slow, prompting him to slowly get out of the coffin with his hands up as I reached for my radio.

"Sgt, we found a civilian so stand by," I notified Kyle while gazing at the old man with a look of suspicion.

"Understood," Kyle replied and Jacob gazed at the old man with a frown.

"Are you the one that sent us that message?" Jacob questioned and the old man nodded.

"Yes, yes I am so I've been trying to reach you ever since I escaped from the convoy," the old man responded.

"Rivers, Sullivan, we'll question him later so we need to get him out of there," Kyle said and I reached for my radio.

"Yes sir," I replied as Jacob and I lowered our rifles and the old man relaxed.

"Move out, I'm heading your way," Kyle told us and Jacob looked at the old man.

"Alright, let's move so stay behind us," Jacob instructed and the old man nodded until Jacob and I moved towards the exit of the mausoleum with the old man right behind us.

We left the mausoleum and started heading to the exit of the cemetery when Skynet reinforcements started showing up and we were forced to get down and stay low so that we could sneak our way past them, moving past gravestones and trying not to get spotted until we made it to the exit and snuck away from the cemetery as I let out a quiet sigh of relief.

"Okay, it's safe now," I said as we started jogging and could see Kyle up ahead as he was waiting for us.

"Rivers, Sullivan, over here," Kyle called out as he gestured for us to regroup with him and we ran up to him.

"Sir, this is the civilian we mentioned on the radio," Jacob said as he motioned his head at the old man and Kyle nodded.

"Follow me, we need to get that man to safety so I've set up an evacuation point this way," Kyle told us as we started moving away from the area.

"Sounds good, lead the way," I responded and we continued moving until we were forced to take cover after seeing T-800s up ahead and I gestured for the old man to stay back as the terminators started firing at Jacob and Kyle, intentionally missing me because of their orders from Skynet to capture me.

We returned fire as I shot a couple of T-800s and Jacob tossed a pipebomb to destroy a couple more while moving from cover to cover as I gestured for the old man to stay behind me, then Kyle started leading us to a nearby building while we finished destroying the remaining T-800s until we started to enter the building.

"Evans, Ferro, we got the package so you're clear to evac," Kyle informed the other two members of our unit.

"Copy that, we'll be heading out soon," Evans replied.

"I'll just set a couple more explosives as a parting gift for Skynet and we'll be on our way," Ferro remarked and I chuckled.

"Nice, I already gave a big old fuck you to Skynet by destroying a couple of key facilities so that'll add insult to injury," I replied as Kyle led me, Jacob, and the old man through the building until we made it to the rendezvous point.

After that, we started to make our way to a subway station to rest for now and I was lost in thought during that time so as we were moving through the ruins, I hoped that this stranger would give us some answers as to what happened to everyone at the Northridge outpost since I have a feeling that this was going to be a long mission.

Chapter Text

After arriving at the subway station, we waited for Ferro and Evans to show up and we set up a campfire to keep ourselves warm while the old man introduced himself as Anselmo, the older man starting to explain how he was one of the residents of the Northridge outpost and what happened to everyone else.

"They looked just like you guys, same uniforms and same weapons so we thought we were saved, but they led us to transporters that took us straight to a terminator factory with production lines churning out hundreds of them a day," Anselmo explained and Kyle frowned.

"So our missing people are still there?" Kyle asked and Anselmo nodded.

"Some, most of them are in a work camp set up not that far from the factory," Anselmo answered as he held his hands in front of the fire to warm up.

"Where's that?" Kyle inquired.

"Further north," Anselmo replied, which wasn't exactly specific.

"And how far north are we talking about here?" I questioned and Anselmo looked at me.

"I couldn't see, it was dark so it was hard to tell," Anselmo told me but that wasn't what I wanted to hear and neither did Kyle if his expression told me anything.

"You know what he is asking, so was it behind the annihilation line?" Kyle asked and Anselmo started looking grim.

"Yes, yes it was," Anselmo confirmed, making me swear under my breath.

"Great, it's going to be hell getting through that mess," I muttered while gently rubbing my face.

"I haven't seen anything like it before, just witnessing them torch everything in their path so I snuck past it after I broke out of the convoy...the ground was so hot that it melted the soles of my shoes," Anselmo explained just as I saw Ferro and Evans arriving.

"Did I hear that right? Are we crossing the annihilation line? That wasn't part of the plan," Ferro pointed out in disbelief as she took a seat on one of the chairs set up around the fire.

"It was supposed to be a quick recon mission," Evans added and Kyle sighed.

"I haven't decided on anything yet," Kyle stated and I cleared my throat.

"Sarge, I just want to point out that we are severely underprepared and unless we have an army backing us, there's no way we'll be able to get past all of that unless we want to get killed in the process," I told him and Kyle frowned in response as Ferro looked at Anselmo.

"Are you sure that's where they are?" Ferro questioned and Anselmo hesitated to answer while we waited for his response.

"I don't...I'm not sure," Anselmo admitted and I sighed as I gently rubbed my eyes stressfully.

"Sir, we have to consider falling back," Evans suggested and Kyle stood up with his rifle.

"Cpl, I've noted yours and Sullivan's concerns but, ultimately, I'll be the one making that decision...now, I'll need some time to think this through but for now, Ferro, you set up the perimeter while you, Evans, will be on first guard duty.

Let's clear our heads," Kyle ordered, and with that said, Ferro and Evans went to do their duty while Jacob and I stood up as we sent each other uneasy looks.

'Christ, I have a bad feeling about this,' I thought as Jacob and I went to check on Anselmo.

"Is everything okay?" Jacob asked the older man, who looked pensive.

"Yes, yes, I'm fine so I'm probably just tired...I must be seeing things. Yeah, that's right, I'm just seeing things," Anselmo said, confusing me and making me a little suspicious since he was acting a bit odd until I heard Kyle clearing his throat, making me and Jacob look at him.

"Rivers, Sullivan, would you two mind checking up on Ferro and Evans? I need some time to come up with a plan," Kyle suggested and Jacob nodded before he and I started looking for Ferro and Evans.

As we went to find Ferro and Evans, I couldn't help but wonder what the hell was going on since something felt off and then there was the fact that John Connor wanted me, Evans, and Jacob on this mission so the man himself must know something I don't because John wouldn't do this unless he had a specific reason for it.

Then there was Evans, someone who I was uncertain about since he showed all the signs of being an infiltrator and he wasn't shown in any of the future war scenes in the movies or the TV show Sarah Connor Chronicles so it made me wonder just how much has changed already just from me appearing in this universe, though I filed it away for now as Jacob and I approached Evans.

"Hey Evans, you don't exactly sound happy about what's going on," I greeted and Evans looked at me and Jacob.

"And why would I be? You and Rivers heard Reese so you two know what it means, we're crossing the annihilation line soon, and what for? To finish a mission that makes absolutely no sense? Did you hear that guy?

We're going after people that 'look like us' so isn't that exactly what that note said, the one you two found in Northridge? Look, we're in over our heads so the team should come first, not the mission. That's what the resistance taught me and I know I'm not the only one that feels that way.

Adam, you do as well since that HK in Bakersfield was giving us a lot of problems and you took care of it because that's what a team does, we look out for one another so meeting Connor is not worth all of this," Evans pointed out and I frowned thoughtfully.

"I know what you mean, we would need an army if we want to get past the annihilation line so I'm not overly keen about this either because of how risky it is, and then there's the fact that Connor personally wanted you, me, and Rivers to go on this mission so I'm not sure why he is so intent on us coming along with Reese and Ferro when there are plenty of people who would volunteer for this.

Maybe he knows something that we don't but either way, we'll just have to take the hand that we're dealt if we want to adapt," I stated just as Ferro suddenly started swearing loudly nearby.

"I think there's someone else you should talk to first," Evans commented and I sighed, then Jacob and I went to go find Ferro and we soon found her as she was working on explosives on top of a table and swearing up a storm in the process.

"Is everything alright?" Jacob inquired tentatively and stopped what she was doing to look at us with a scowl until she sighed.

"This whole situation has me so wound up that I'm shaking, not good for handling explosives," Ferro grumbled and I started looking concerned.

"Maybe you should take a break or something since letting all this get to you isn't exactly a good thing," I pointed out and Ferro pursed her lips.

"I'd love to, but since there's no one in 100 miles of here that can help, I think I'll have to power through," Ferro said and Jacob frowned with a look of worry in his eyes.

"I know all of this is stressful, but it's too early to start worrying since Reese hasn't decided anything about crossing the annihilation line yet," Jacob replied and Ferro narrowed her eyes.

"You know what else he's keeping quiet about? How our previous assignment was stupid and bound to fail, or how truly fucked up it is that we're back in the trenches just hours after our team got decimated.

He hasn't mentioned Brooks, Johnson, or Yang...he hasn't even mentioned them once like they never fucking existed!" Ferro snapped, making me and Jacob hold our hands up to placate her.

"Ferro, we get it...Jacob and I have seen good men and women die during this hell and there were times when I wondered if it would ever end so I know how frustrating that can be," I said and Ferro softened her eyes.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't be snapping at you two like that," Ferro told us regretfully and Jacob nodded.

"It's okay, so let's talk," Jacob offered.

"Yeah, let's," Ferro agreed and we walked around the corner until we sat near an entrance, Ferro and Jacob sitting together while I sat across from them.

"So...those names you mentioned, they belonged to the soldiers who died during that mission, right?" I asked and Ferro sighed.

"Yeah, they were, except they weren't soldiers...not to me. They were my family...they practically raised me," Ferro replied quietly.

"How so?" Jacob inquired.

"I enlisted when I was 11, was assigned to this team of 4 guys who I was absolutely intimidated by so I was trying to play the tough kid in front of them, you know? Constantly trying to impress them and looking back on it now, I must've been an endless source of entertainment for them," Ferro explained and I was shocked to hear that.

'Christ, she was 11 when she signed up? That's far too young to be fighting a war in this type of environment,' I thought as I felt almost distraught that kids had no choice but to become child soldiers just to survive in this hell.

"So, was Reese one of those people?" I asked and Ferro smiled slightly.

"He was...well, I hope deep down he still is...the Reese you two have met is not the Reese I knew since that one always had time for his teammates, and the man leading us now only thinks about the 'plan' but yeah, he used to be part of the team.

With the four of them, I was happy since for the first time in my life, I had someone looking after me so that's what I imagine having a family must be like and now I'm starting to think that if I get killed, Reese won't even care.

He can't look me in the eyes, and hasn't said my name this whole time so it's always 'corporal' like he doesn't know me," Ferro replied with her voice cracking up slightly, and it hurt to hear all of that since this shitty world keeps changing people and not for the better either.

"What is your name?" Jacob inquired.

"It's Charlotte...anyway, thanks for letting me vent since sometimes, that's all it takes," Ferro told us and I nodded.

"No problem, we all have to let it out sooner or later since keeping it bottled up will eventually drive us crazy," I said with a look of understanding until Jacob and I stood up.

As we left Ferro alone so that she could have some space, I thought about what I've learned about Kyle and it explains why he is the way he is since the loss of those men must've affected him more than I thought, so him being distant was probably his way of trying to cope from the trauma of losing people he knew pretty well.

He also must be scared of losing anyone else so him being the way he is now is probably a way to protect himself from getting hurt from more loss since he probably thinks it would be easier, so it had me worried that I might eventually wind up like that the longer I'm trapped in this dimension but can worry about that later since we needed to figure out what our next move should be so Jacob and I were heading over to where Kyle was.

"Rivers, Sullivan, can I have a word with you two?" Kyle questioned as we approached him.

"Sir?" Jacob asked.

"I wanted to ask your opinions about what we've heard today, so what do you two really think happened in Northridge? Do either of you think that some rogue resistance squad cut a deal with Skynet? Decided to deliver an outpost full of civilians in exchange for some special treatment or maybe you both have theories of your own regarding what's happened?" Kyle inquired and I frowned thoughtfully.

"Well, I have heard stories about human collaborators who work for the machines just to get some special treatment so it's possible, but honestly, I think this is the work of terminators since this is what the infiltration units were designed for so now we're just seeing what they're capable of," I replied and Jacob nodded.

"He's right, this started happening after the first infiltrator showed up so it's not out of the realm of possibility that Skynet could've made more of them," Jacob agreed and Kyle started looking grim.

"I was afraid you two would say that, but I trust your judgment since both of you had the most experience with them," Kyle said.

"Is that all, sir?" I asked and Kyle shook his head.

"One last thing, we all know what the deal is with the T-600s since they're easy to spot and their rubbery mugs are not fooling anyone but what about this new model? I'm asking you both since you two are one of the few people who got a look at them up close and lived.

So, do you think you would know if you were talking to a terminator?" Kyle asked and Jacob nodded.

"I believe we would because even though they may look human at first, they would still act like machines and that's what will always give them away, sir," Jacob responded and Kyle looked satisfied to hear that.

"That's good to hear, I'll be sure to remember that so that's it for now," Kyle said and something just occurred to me.

"Sarge, I've been meaning to tell you this but I think you should talk to Cpl. Ferro since it appears that she still hasn't fully recovered from your previous assignment," I pointed out and Kyle frowned.

"I understand, but unfortunately, that will have to wait since there's still a lot of work ahead before we move out," Kyle stated and Jacob cleared his throat.

"We don't mean to step out of line, sir, but that may be part of the problem," Jacob said and Kyle pursed his lips.

"I see your point, but I can't risk the safety of my team so preparations have to come first but you two can take a break now since you both did a hell of a job today," Kyle told us and that ended the conversation there.

I went over to my sleeping bag and went to lie down on it, placing my rifle next to me for easy access and I just stared up at the ceiling deep in thought about everything we had learned today but I was also worried about Ferro since she is still not in a good state and having her go on this mission after she barely survived the last one and witnessed a few of her close friends die isn't exactly a good idea since she should recover first, though I'll keep it in mind for now as I closed my eyes and tried to get some sleep.

I didn't know how much time had passed by, but I was startled awake when someone gently shook my shoulder and I could see it was Kyle but he held up a finger to his lips as I noticed that the sun was shining through the holes in the ceiling but the familiar metallic footsteps coming from above and the sight of patrolling Skynet troops made my blood go cold.

The machines were here and they would shoot on sight if they were to spot us down here so I sent Kyle a nod and slowly reached for my rifle, grabbing it and carefully getting up while trying not to make a sound as I got my rifle ready, using one of the pillars for cover as the others started to wake up from the racket.

"What's going on?" Anselmo wondered and I frantically gestured for him to be quiet but it was too late since the machines noticed it and a massive metallic foot smashed through the ceiling, crushing the older man into a red paste before he could react.

"Retreat!" Kyle shouted and all hell broke loose after that.

"What the fuck was that?!" Jacob shouted as we all started running through a tunnel.

"I don't know, but we're not staying here to find out so let's go!" Kyle yelled as we went deeper into the subway, arriving at one platform when the same metal foot smashed through the ceiling and I spotted a T-600 and an armored spider.

"Fuck, contact!" I exclaimed just as we started taking fire, forcing us to take cover.

"Why the hell didn't my explosives go off?!" Ferro yelled as I popped out of cover and shot at the armored spider.

"How about we worry about that later?!" Kyle exclaimed as I destroyed the armored spider with a few well-placed shots to its red optic and the others blasted the T-600 to pieces.

"Alright, everyone on me!" Kyle ordered and that was our cue to move.

"That thing...was an HK Centurion," Evans told us as we moved down the platform.

"How the hell do you know that?" Ferro questioned.

"I saw them work on it when I was at that camp," Evans replied and Kyle tensed up.

"So, another of their weapons has come online? We're in deep shit," Kyle stated as Jacob and I hurried over to one of the train cars that had its doors slightly open.

We worked together to pull them open when Kyle warned us that there were more machines up ahead and to spread out so we moved and wound up on the platform across from the one we were just on, suddenly taking fire from an armored spider and T-650 so we took cover.

We resumed fire as two T-600s showed up but we took care of the four Skynet models attacking us and hurried down a subway tunnel as the HK centurion was stomping around above us when we wound up on another platform until Jacob and I went over to another train car to pull open the doors.

"Alright, everyone stay low and be quiet," Kyle whispered once it got quiet.

We ducked down and started moving through the old train cars as Evans pointed out the T-600s that were lined up on the two opposite platforms up ahead and Kyle responded that it was a firing squad, making me scowl since that wasn't good so we needed to not make a sound when Ferro accidentally knocked over an old briefcase and it made a loud bang.

"Fuck," Ferro whimpered, then I heard the chainguns spinning up.

"Ah shit, move!" I shouted just as the train car we were in started taking fire.

We started running while keeping our heads down when I saw sunlight up ahead and we managed to make it outside, only to be shot at by multiple Skynet models as an aerial did a bombing run as it flew above us, making us take cover and we shot back at the enemy.

I swore loudly when drones started showing up so I lit a few pipe bombs and tossed them to take out some of the armored spiders and blasted a couple of T-600s when Jacob and I started targeting the drones, shooting down a few and I shot a gas tank that flew around in the air before colliding into a T-600 and blowing a few of them up.

Once it was clear, we ran out of cover but the centurion was back and started firing rockets as it intentionally missed me because of Skynet programming it to capture me but that didn't mean I would be in one piece so we were forced to duck into a nearby building on our left.

Kyle led the way as we exited the building and encountered more Skynet troops so we were forced to fight back and took them down when an aerial showed up and we were forced to run for our lives as it started blasting at us.

I still had the RPG but I had to stay still to use it and I sure as hell wasn't going to do that since I wasn't suicidal as we ducked into an alley on our right and I noticed that we were getting close to the extraction point as Kyle pointed it out when we ran out into the open and encountered more of Skynet's troops.

"Jesus, how many of these fuckers are there?!" I shouted in complete disbelief as we started shooting.

"Doesn't matter, just take them down!" Kyle yelled in response as I blasted a couple of T-600s.

There were also T-808s with flamethrowers and Jacob targeted the fuel tank on one of them, blowing it up and taking a couple more of them with it as I threw a can grenade at an armored spider and the Skynet model was destroyed from the explosion when Ferro shot down one drone and Evans killed the other one until it was clear.

"Just a little further!" Kyle informed us as we ran out of cover and continued our way to the extraction point.

Unfortunately, we came across another group of machines and I was starting to get sick of this as I tossed a pipe bomb to blow up a couple while the others took care of the rest and we waited for a little bit but no more showed up.

"Last one!" Kyle shouted and I sighed in relief.

"Thank god for that, now let's get the fuck out of here," I stated, and just as I said that, the centurion suddenly showed up as its booming metallic stomps bellowed behind us.

"God-fucking-dammit, head to the building on our left!" Kyle yelled and nobody needed to tell him twice as we ran.

We were sprinting as fast as we could as the centurion fired at the others and avoided shooting at me while it was completely chaotic and explosions erupted all around us, but we ducked into the building Kyle pointed out, and kept running as fast as we could.

'Christ, when does this shit ever end?!' I thought as we avoided explosions during our run through the building.

We kept fleeing from the centurion and ran outside as Kyle led the way and I saw that we were quickly running to a pipe that led underground so we didn't stop and ducked inside just as missiles were fired and blew up behind us, neither of us stopping for anything.

Chapter Text

I didn't know how we did it, if it was blind luck or if something was looking out for us, but we managed to escape with our lives and we stayed on the move since we weren't going to take any chances after what happened.

Thankfully, we managed to find a place in the ruins to hold up for now to wait until night fell and I was mostly twitchy and alert as the hours went by throughout the day while we stayed hidden from the machines, though I was relieved when I saw that the sun was setting and felt myself relaxing a little.

After all this time being trapped in this world, I was just so sick of hiding and fighting for my life every single day and night so I wanted this hell to end already but I still didn't know what year it was and I never asked anyone since I didn't want to start getting weird looks from others.

Still, once the sun went down, the darkness didn't help me relax since it just made the ruins even more ominous and creepy so I kept my eyes and ears open while Kyle was being more distant than usual, which didn't seem good since who knows what was on his mind right now but Jacob and I went to find him and we found him standing in front of an opening of where a wall used to be, just staring out at the ruins.

"What the hell are we doing here? Is all this really worth it, John?" Kyle wondered, starting to sound doubtful and I sighed as Ferro walked up to him.

"Sgt, I wanted to make an official request for a demotion," Ferro spoke up and I could hear the guilt in her voice.

"There's no need for that, Ferro," Kyle replied.

"The anti-tank mines that I set up didn't work so I feel responsible..." Ferro trailed off regretfully as Evans met up with the rest of us.

"It's not your fault, none of this should have happened because we shouldn't even be here in the first place," Evans stated with a scowl, which took me by surprise since he usually doesn't react to most things but Kyle took offense to that as he turned around and glared at him.

"Easy, soldier," Kyle warned as the air started to grow thick with tension.

"Sgt, we're about to cross the annihilation line and I'd like to know why," Evans demanded and Kyle started looking irritated.

"Because you were selected for this mission, which should be enough for you," Kyle retorted and I was ready to step in to intervene if it even so much as looked like a fight was about to break out.

"With all due respect sir, it isn't so is there something that we don't know yet? What's so special about those people? We've been kept in the dark for too long," Evans stated and Kyle looked at me, Jacob, and Ferro.

"Is this how you all feel?" Kyle questioned, having an expression of disbelief when Ferro sighed.

"Kyle...there has to be more..." Ferro reasoned and I stepped forward.

"Sgt, we almost died today and we lost a civilian in the process so I'm just wondering why Rivers, Evans, and I were personally selected for this mission by Connor himself, and there has to be a reason why he wants us to go behind enemy lines to rescue those civilians since I heard that he doesn't do things unless it was for a specific reason.

We just want to know what the purpose all of this is for, that's all," I pointed out and Kyle frowned but then he sighed and looked away.

"The last message sent before Northridge went silent is that they said they rescued a group of civilians, people who were kept in cages for years and starved, looked like they were barely alive," Kyle explained and Ferro looked bemused.

"And despite that, Skynet went looking for them...why?" Ferro questioned in confusion.

"They mentioned a name...a name Connor wanted to keep a secret so we didn't want anyone to be emotionally invested in the mission but seeing as how we're all looking over the edge now, one of the people rescued...was the father of Sgt. Rivers," Kyle said as he and the others glanced directly at Jacob, who started looking shocked while I was also taken aback.

"What? That can't be true, he died years ago," Jacob gasped.

"Connor got ahold of some intel that confirmed that wasn't true so he's alive, and in that camp," Kyle stated and I removed my hat to run my hand through my dirty and greasy hair.

"You've got to be shitting me..." I trailed off, not sure what to say as Kyle looked at the rest of us.

"Does anyone have any more questions regarding the mission?" Kyle questioned and the rest of us shook our heads.

"Alright, we move out in a couple of hours so get some rest and that goes for you too, Rivers," Kyle added and we nodded in response.

"I'm gonna get some shuteye before the mission," Evans said when he walked away and so did Ferro, then Jacob and I left Kyle alone and went to sit against a wall.

"Jacob, I didn't know your father was still around so I can't imagine what you're feeling right now," I said and Jacob sighed.

"All this time, I thought he was dead...he tried to save me when I was a kid so I grew up all these years thinking he was dead but now that I know he survived that and is with the people of Northridge, then we need to save him and all those other refugees," Jacob stated and I nodded in agreement before chuckling.

"Shit...no pressure, am I right?" I remarked and Jacob sighed.

"Come on, let's see if we can check up on the others," Jacob said and we got up, going to see how Kyle was doing and he looked at Jacob.

"Rivers, I know this is a lot for you to take in but I can't have anyone on my team distracted, not now so is that understood?" Kyle asked and Jacob nodded.

"I won't be, we've got a difficult mission ahead of us so Sullivan and I want to know the details," Jacob stated and Kyle gave him a look of approval.

"After all you've heard, you're still focused so I appreciate that and you're right, this will be a difficult mission...Anselmo mentioned two targets so we'll start with the Skynet factory but, of course, that means we'll have to cross the annihilation line first," Kyle explained and I looked uncertain.

"This seems like a lot for a five-person team," I pointed out and Kyle nodded.

"It is, which is why I want each of us to take a sector over the annihilation line, and once we're there, our responsibility will be to cause as much damage as possible since I want Skynet to notice so when it does, it will send reinforcements from the factory and leave the place unprotected.

That's where we'll regroup before we get our people out so I know I'm asking a lot, but I don't see any alternative," Kyle told us and we nodded.

"We all know the risk and we're prepared to take it, sir," Jacob replied.

"Rivers, I'm sure you all do but that doesn't change the fact that I'm the one that's asking you all to cross the annihilation line," Kyle said with a frown.

"We know it's a tough call and we're glad that neither of us are the ones making it, though I wouldn't be surprised if you're not completely comfortable making it either," I said and Kyle sighed.

"You two deserve honesty, but if I were to speak freely, I would have to say things that a soldier shouldn't hear from his commander so get your gear, we're moving out soon," Kyle told us and we nodded.

"Okay, but do you believe these people are still alive, Sgt?" Jacob inquired.

"The old man mentioned that Skynet took them to a work camp, so if that's the case, we're lucky," Kyle replied and Jacob looked puzzled.

"What do you mean?" Jacob asked.

"Skynet won't start exterminating its prisoners until the camp's at full capacity or when its objective has been completed because these people are valuable to Skynet so it'll keep your father alive, Rivers," Kyle replied and that was good to hear since we'll still have time to get those people out of that hellhole.

"That's good to know, and you're sure Skynet will take the bait?" I questioned.

"You have to remember that Skynet is just a machine, a program that works according to protocols and that works to our advantage so it's predictable, and that's going to be Skynet's downfall," Kyle stated.

I couldn't argue with him there so Jacob and I left him to his thoughts as we went to check on the others, entering another room and saw that Evans was resting so it was starting to look like maybe Jacob and I were wrong about him being an infiltrator but we'll keep an eye on him either way as we went to check on Ferro.

"Rivers, that was quite some news and I can't imagine what's going through your head, so how are you feeling?" Ferro asked and Jacob frowned.

"Shocked, to say the least, and you? It's gonna get tough and I don't want to put anyone in danger-" Jacob said when Ferro held a hand up to interrupt him.

"I'm gonna stop you right there because I've been fighting my whole life and never really knew what I was fighting for, now I finally have an answer that makes sense to me so your father? Actual family? That's something worth fighting for and we're going to get him back, Rivers.

The things I'd do to talk to my dad, even if it was just a moment," Ferro stated and I looked at her sympathetically.

"What would you say to him?" I asked and Ferro sighed.

"You're putting me on the spot, but...well, I've never met my father and I guess that's not uncommon these days so I guess I would say "Hi, nice to finally meet you!" but more importantly, do you know what you're going to say if you were to suddenly come across your father, Sullivan?" Ferro inquired and I shrugged.

"I wouldn't know, he was killed right in front of me by the machines a couple of years ago while we were out scavenging," I lied, and Ferro sent me a look of sympathy.

"I'm sorry to hear that, and what about you, Rivers?" Ferro asked and Jacob looked thoughtful.

"I guess I would tell him that I was sorry for not looking for him," Jacob said guiltily.

"Hey, don't do that to yourself because how could you have known?" Ferro told him and I decided to change the subject.

"So, have you talked to Reese yet?" I inquired and Ferro grimaced.

"About that, I'm not going to bother him yet since just look at the craziness he has to deal with so I'll give him some space and we'll probably talk when we get back from the mission," Ferro said.

I frowned at that since I knew what would happen to her and I was hoping to change her fate so that I wouldn't have to go through even more loss but Jacob and I left her alone and we went to get some rest while I was pretty anxious, knowing that we were going to walk into hell itself soon.

Two hours later, we all got packed up and ready to go so we left and moved through the ruins as we started getting closer and closer to the annihilation line when we went up a hill and saw what was waiting for us.

I was completely stunned by the smoke that was rising in the distance and the amount of ash that was passing by us as it stretched on for miles, just horrified by the amount of devastation that was before us but we had a job to do and we wouldn't let this stop us.

We all separated and headed to our assigned sectors so I was on my own with this one but the thought of breaking shit to make things more difficult for Skynet made me feel a little better so that's what I set out to do.

I moved through my assigned sector as I destroyed different Skynet models and did my part by sabotaging a few key Skynet locations by blowing them up as it took a while but I was done with my objective and reported it to Kyle as the others had reported in that they were done, so I started making my way to the extraction point and left the area before making my way to the Skynet research facility to regroup with the others and it didn't take long until I met up with them near the facility.

"Everyone's here? Good...this is it, that's the factory where they keep the prisoners," Kyle informed us as we gazed upon the ominous facility that was up ahead.

"Looks like Skynet took the bait since it shifted its security forces," Evans pointed out as he scouted out the perimeter with his rifle.

"What did I tell you? Skynet's just a predictable piece of computer software so we can use that against it. The plan is simple, we infiltrate the target building and secure the prisoners, and once we find the people we're looking for, we leave.

Rivers, I want us to pick apart what's left of their surveillance so mark the remaining terminators for Evans to take out," Kyle ordered and Jacob nodded.

Jacob used his goggles to mark the targets and Evans killed them with expert shots, clearing the perimeter for us so we started moving up to the building when we came across so much blood and human remains that were all over the ground and I was horrified by the sight while Ferro looked like she was going to be sick.

Still, we ignored the powerful stench coming from the blood and went over to the laser gate when Jacob planted an explosive charge before we all stayed back and the explosive detonated, taking down the lasers and we were free to enter the facility.

"We're going in, stay sharp," Kyle whispered and we moved forward.

We entered the facility and found ourselves getting shot at by the Skynet troops that were still in there but there was a T-47 among them and that made me take out my RPG since the firepower was needed for this.

I shouted at the others to cover me and they laid down cover fire as I popped out and made sure to check behind me to make sure that no one would get hit by the back blast, then I fired a rocket at the T-47 and it impacted before blowing up, rendering it offline and a second rocket finished it off as it exploded.

Once the much bigger machine was no longer a threat, we focused fire on the other Skynet models as I took down a few drones and a couple of T-800s while Jacob and Ferro blew up two turrets and the last couple of machines were blasted into scrap by Evans and Kyle.

"That was the last one," Ferro said as we moved out of cover.

"We need to get to the lower levels, follow me," Kyle told us as he took the lead and we were right behind him.

We started making our way deeper into the facility and began to head down into the lower levels when we were attacked by two T-800s so we were forced to get into cover as they shot at us, then we popped out and blasted them to pieces.

Once they were down, we kept moving and fought our way through the facility as we took down four T-800s and a turret in one section and Kyle pointed out that we were getting close so we continued to head even deeper into the bowels of the facility but then we came across something that looked like a gigantic grinder.

"Fuck me, is that..." Ferro trailed off in horror and Kyle nodded.

"Yeah, the grinder," Kyle confirmed grimly.

"Jesus, I heard horror stories about it but I never thought I would actually be able to see it up close," I said in shock and disbelief.

"Keep your eyes open," Kyle told us and we kept moving, heading to where the cages were and saw that they were empty.

"Shit, these cages are empty so what now?" I wondered and Kyle frowned thoughtfully.

"There must be more, we have to keep going," Kyle said and kept moving, despite Ferro's protests.

We followed him into another section of the facility and suddenly started taking fire, making us take cover and shoot back at the next wave of assailants as we kept moving from cover to cover while dealing with the attackers from above our left and in front of us but we managed to take them down and went into the next section until Jacob got the doors open and we saw many different containers on our right.

"Holy fuck, how many of them are there?" Ferro gasped in disbelief as we kept moving.

"They're still offline," Evans pointed out.

"Thank god for that since I don't want to find out what's in those containers," I admitted uneasily as we kept moving until we stumbled across what appeared to be clones of Evans that were suspended in the air by some kind of machine.

"What the fuck?" Ferro gasped while my eyes widened at what we'd found.

"Oh my god, this is..." I trailed off as Evans walked up to one of the offline infiltrators who had his likeness.

"Me..." Evans said and I quickly backed away from him while getting my rifle ready, my fear of him possibly being an infiltrator coming back like a tidal wave.

"I fucking knew it!" Ferro shouted and Jacob looked at her.

"Ferro," Jacob said to get her attention and she turned her gaze on him.

"All that talk about Connor, he was on a fucking mission to terminate him!" Ferro yelled distrustful.

"He got me out of that camp so I wanted to thank him," Evans tried to say but Ferro wasn't hearing it.

"Bullshit! Wait, did you sabotage my mines? The ones I set up at the hideout?" Ferro interrogated and that's when I started aiming at Evans with a harsh glare.

"Is that true? Did you sabotage the mines? Don't even think about fucking lying to us or I will shoot you dead, asshole," I threatened coldly when Kyle walked over to me and forcefully moved the barrel out of the way.

"Okay, this stops now!" Kyle shouted and I glared at him.

"Reese, how the fuck do you expect us to trust him after seeing this?! He could be an infiltrator that was programmed to kill Connor himself!" I exclaimed while gesturing at the infiltrators and Kyle walked over to the main terminal.

"Look, it's all in here so Evans was not imprisoned in a camp, he was in a research facility where they used his likeness to create a new type of infiltration unit," Kyle explained and Ferro looked doubtful.

"And how do you know that?" Ferro questioned skeptically.

"From John Connor, and I didn't want to believe it but so far...everything Connor said has come true," Kyle replied and Ferro looked like she didn't know how to react to that.

"That's impossible," Ferro muttered distressfully as Kyle hacked into the terminal and looked through the files that were on it.

"Shit, it says in here that the implementation of Cyberdyne Systems Model 102 is finished," Kyle informed us.

"And what does that mean?" I questioned and Kyle looked back at us grimly.

"That they no longer have any use for those people so we got to move," Kyle stated urgently.

With that said, we started making our way down a path to our left and I know why Kyle is heading that way since we needed to destroy this place because we cannot afford to have an army of these fuckers let loose upon the resistance or what was left of humanity was fucked.

We arrived in a T-800 production area and started taking fire from complete models and an armored spider so we returned fire and took care of the threat so we were about to continue forward when one of the new infiltrators arrived and that made my eyes widen.

"Fuck, infiltrator!" I shouted and we started blasting the extremely dangerous threat, the new model getting shot multiple times until we managed to take it down.

"That felt good," Evans admitted and I chuckled.

"Yeah, I imagine," I agreed when Jacob looked at Kyle.

"Where to now?" Jacob asked, just as drones started to arrive.

"First, let's take out those drones," Kyle said and we all got into cover yet again.

We took down the drones and three T-800s showed up so we focused fire on them as I blasted one in the head while Jacob and Ferro shot the other two until it was clear, then Kyle had Jacob go find the terminal to shut down the laser barriers while we kept the area secure.

The quiet didn't last long as we started taking fire again by more hostiles and were forced to shoot back as we tried to defend ourselves, but they just kept coming and it didn't take long for us to get pinned down by constant fire so Jacob needs to hurry the hell up or the others were going to get killed and I would be captured.

"Jacob, you need to hurry the hell up because we are getting overwhelmed here!" I yelled as I shot down a drone.

"I'm almost there, I can see the computer," Jacob replied and it didn't take long until the laser barriers shut off and we somehow managed to take down the rest of the threats.

"Nicely done, Rivers, now get down here because we need to go," Kyle said, then we moved past where the laser barriers used to be and kept jogging until we entered a room that had the main generator of the facility.

"There's the generator, now let's blow this sucker up," I said and Kyle nodded in agreement.

"Rivers, Ferro, set up the explosives," Kyle ordered and the two people in question went to plant explosive charges on key areas of the generator until they were done and regrouped with the rest of us.

With that done, now it was time to haul ass so we started running back the way we came and we were at a safe enough distance for Ferro to detonate the explosives, which destroyed the generator and started a chain reaction of explosions around us as we sprinted to the main entrance of the facility until we got out and ran past the main gate, just before the facility started getting destroyed by explosions until it was nothing but ruins.

'Well, Skynet is certainly going to be hurting from what we did tonight,' I thought as we kept running, making sure to get as far away from this place as possible since there was no doubt Skynet was going to send god knows how many of its troops to this location so we kept running, not stopping for anything.

Chapter Text

We kept moving through the ruins as the sun had risen and it didn't take long until we finally made it back to our current hideout as we were all tired and weary while Evans commented about how this was a shitshow, causing Ferro to point out that it wasn't helping as Jacob and I went to check on her.

"This changes nothing, so keep your head up," Ferro told Jacob, who frowned.

"How can you be so calm after everything that's happened?" Jacob questioned in disbelief.

"I don't know, maybe because if there's one mission that's worth pursuing, it's this one since it gives me purpose...I was heading into a dangerous place after that last assignment like nothing was keeping me here and that maybe I was supposed to die back then.

I started to feel like I was living on borrowed time, and I know how it sounds, but now I know what I'm doing and that gives me hope...sorry guys, I got some things to do because I need to apologize to Evans since he's alright and so are you two.

Thanks for always checking in on me, you two are good people," Ferro told us and we nodded in response before leaving her to her thoughts as we went to see how Evans was doing as we approached the tall burly man, who was gazing out at the ruins and I started feeling awkward as I cleared my throat to get his attention.

"Hey, um...I just wanted to apologize about the whole threatening to shoot you thing earlier since I got a bit paranoid after we found the infiltrators that looked like you, so I hope you don't hold that against me or anything," I spoke up and Evans looked at me.

"No, I don't really blame you since I would've reacted the same way so I'm not going to hold it against you," Evans reassured me and I felt relieved by that since I wouldn't want the big guy to hold a grudge against me for what happened.

"How are you feeling about all this?" Jacob inquired and Evans frowned.

"About what? The botched mission or becoming Skynet's new face?" Evans questioned and I felt bad for him since I wouldn't know how I would feel if Skynet decided to use my likeness to create new infiltrator models.

"It's just weird that the AI would specifically pick you for it," I commented and Evans looked puzzled.

"What do you mean?" Evans asked in confusion and I hope he wouldn't take offense to this.

"No offense or anything, but I'd like to think that an infiltration unit would want to blend in more and be less..." I trailed off and Evans narrowed his eyes.

"Less what?" Evans asked and I grimaced.

"You know, intimidating," I added and Evans made a face at that.

"People find me intimidating? Laugh all you want but the life after getting back is going to look very different since getting clearance from top brass is going to be an even bigger pain in the ass," Evans stated irritably and I winced while Jacob sighed.

"Yeah, I imagine you're going to get a lot of looks," Jacob spoke up and Evans scoffed.

"Are you okay? I didn't mean to make fun of you or anything like that," I said and Evans shook his head.

"It's not that, I've seen that look the day they freed us from that facility since I was locked in a cell cramped with dozens of people standing shoulder to shoulder, then we suddenly start hearing noise...blasts from a plasma rifle coming from the distance," Evans explained as he held a frown.

"Was there anything you could do?" Jacob asked and Evans nodded.

"Yeah, I started praying while waiting for the inevitable, then we heard someone yell so turned out it was a Tech-Com unit, and among the soldiers was John Connor himself...he opened the cage and we all started cheering but then something happened.

In a room full of people jumping for joy, Connor noticed me," Evans replied and I looked confused.

"I don't understand," I admitted and Evans sighed.

"You have to imagine it, his eyes stayed on me just a second too long and at that moment, I started fearing for my life again since it was as if in that split second he was figuring out whether to shoot me or not, not the entire cage...just me.

All of a sudden, the relief of being saved was gone," Evans said when Jacob and I widened our eyes.

"He knew...about you, about the new model," Jacob gasped and Evans nodded.

"He must have so that's actually why I wanted to meet him since I wanted to ask if I was just imagining things, guess I got my answer...never in my life did I feel so helpless, just boiling with rage so on my way out of there..." Evans trailed off and that's when it hit me.

"You smashed a terminator with your bare hands?" I asked and Evans nodded.

"Yeah...that's a lot to process so I need some time to think this through but thanks for the talk, you two," Evans told us and I started feeling guilty for ever thinking that he might've been an infiltrator since the poor guy has been through hell and he experiences freedom for the first time in who knows how long, only to be treated with suspicion and distrust among the other members of the resistance.

'Shit, I feel like such an idiot,' I thought as Jacob and I walked away from Evans and went to find Kyle, who was staring out at the ruins with a troubled look until he noticed us.

"I can't believe it, outsmarted by an outdated piece of fucking junk...a computer program older than any one of us," Kyle said in frustration and Jacob sighed.

"Sarge, we need a break," Jacob told him and I nodded in agreement since we've been running ourselves ragged during this mission and are close to running on fumes so a break is an excellent idea since we wouldn't be good to anybody if we were dead or captured in my case.

"Might as well, seems that all this time spent on coming up with a plan is getting us nowhere so you two want to join me?" Kyle offered and we nodded.

"Yes sir," I said and Kyle gestured for us to take a seat nearby so the three of us went to sit on the ground.

We talked about a lot of things as it made me feel better and more relaxed since we needed this right now and Kyle seemed to be loosening up a little as he started describing what his life was like before John had recruited him so I was already familiar with his backstory after watching the movies and the TV show Sarah Connor Chronicles so many times but actually hearing it from him in person was a whole different experience as I found newfound respect in the man who will become the one to conceive the savior of humanity.

"The dark years...that's what Connor calls it, what we're living through right now and I hope it means now because if the dark years are still to come..." Kyle trailed off, telling us another of his stories about John as we were still sitting in a circle while candles were lit since a campfire was just too risky.

"Does he always speak in code?" Jacob inquired and Kyle huffed.

"I guess he does, and to be honest, I don't understand half of the things he tells me, and even worse, he makes me memorize things that make no sense to me such as messages to people I've never even met.

It feels like he putting me through tests, preparing me to be part of something...some grand scheme," Kyle admitted and I can understand why he felt that way since John was known to be cryptic from time to time to push people in a certain direction.

"If that's the case, then why do you trust him?" I inquired curiously.

"There used to be a simple answer to that question...Connor saved me, taught me to fight and I was even naive enough for a moment to think that he prepared me for everything that's out there so he gave me hope, and that used to be enough," Kyle replied and Jacob looked thoughtful.

"And now?" Jacob asked and Kyle frowned.

"Now? Things are different since I've lost most of my previous squad and I've put a new one in danger by crossing the annihilation line, so what the hell is all this for? Rivers, I envy you since you've at least got something to fight for," Kyle admitted and Jacob sighed.

"I'll do everything to get my father out of there but I will fight for the lives of the other prisoners with the same commitment," Jacob stated with a look of determination and Kyle almost seemed to smile but it was gone before I could notice fully.

"How did I know you'd say something like that, Rivers?" Kyle remarked but something was bothering me.

"Still, that Terminator factory we just destroyed, it couldn't have been a coincidence," I spoke up and Kyle looked at me in bemusement.

"What do you mean?" Kyle asked.

"I think Connor knew exactly what we would find there since he knows about Evans' role in this whole operation and he certainly knew about Jacob's because of his father being alive and locked up with the rest of the Northridge refugees but what is my role in all of this?

I think he sent us here for a reason," I pointed out and Kyle looked thoughtful.

"That does sound like something Connor would do," Kyle said and Jacob hummed in thought.

"Just like Adam here, I believe there's a place in this whole puzzle for every one of us," Jacob added and Kyle scoffed.

"Funny, for someone who believes there's no such thing as fate, Connor likes to watch things happen exactly as he intended to," Kyle commented and Jacob started looking solemn.

"Unfortunately, those things sometimes come at a cost but I don't think Connor would put you through more than he thinks you can handle," Jacob stated and Kyle sighed.

"Dammit Rivers, it shouldn't be the responsibility of you and Sullivan to talk your commander off the ledge," Kyle muttered in slight exasperation and I smirked.

"We all need a break sometimes, Sarge," I pointed out and Kyle looked thoughtful.

"You and Rivers may be right...thank you, I needed a fresh perspective so if you don't mind, I've got something to do before we leave," Kyle told us, a look of determination now showing in his eyes.

"Prepare gear and ammo?" I asked and Kyle shook his head.

"No, I need that word with Ferro since it's been long overdue," Kyle stated with a firm look.

I was surprised to hear that but Jacob and I sent him a nod before getting up and walking away, though I was still deep in thought about everything that had happened and started wondering what my role was in all of this since it had been revealed what Evans' and Jacob's are but mine hasn't yet as Jacob looked at me.

"You good? You seem to have something on your mind," Jacob said and I sighed.

"Just wondering what my role is supposed to be in all of this since I was chosen for a reason and I don't know what that is yet," I replied with a shrug and Jacob nodded with a look of understanding.

"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll figure it out soon so let's get some rest since we don't know what we'll encounter in that prison camp," Jacob said and I didn't argue with that as I went to one of the bunkbeds and tried to get some rest to prepare for the big battle ahead.

After a short time, we were ready to head to the prison camp so we grabbed our gear and ammo before heading out and loading up the car before getting in but Kyle stared out at the ruins while he was behind the wheel and hadn't started the car yet.

"Reese?" Ferro spoke up and Kyle sighed.

"We're ill-equipped, we're too few, and there's no rescue team to come for us, not to mention we're behind the annihilation line and I can't protect you from what's out there so that alone is enough to free you of your duty, now if you want to leave, just say the word.

But, if you decide to stay, I can promise that I will fight beside you through whatever happens so just take your time and-" Kyle said and was cut off when Ferro put a hand on his arm.

"Kyle? We're staying, no matter what," Ferro stated with conviction in her voice and Kyle looked at her for and moment before he nodded and went to start up the engine, then we started heading to where the camp was since we had to hurry or Skynet would execute all of the people being held captive there, then we stopped at a safe distance away from the camp.

"This is as far as we go so grab your gear, we're heading out," Kyle ordered and we all went to get our gear before exiting the car.

"So, what are we looking for?" I asked as we started moving through the ruins.

"Based on the intel we got at the factory, we're looking for sector A of the camp so that should be where Rivers' father is," Kyle replied as we jogged through the ruins while keeping our eyes and ears open until we started getting close to sounds of activity such as plasma fire and explosions.

"Something's happening so are we late to the party? What the hell are they shooting at?" Ferro wondered as I could see explosions and plasma fire happening in the distance.

"I don't know, but I have a feeling we're about to find out," I replied as we started hurrying and started going into some ruins when we spotted a bunch of people.

"12 o'clock!" Ferro shouted as we approached the group.

"Hold your fire, those are friendlies," Kyle said when one of the people noticed us.

"Look, it's the resistance! Thank god!" the man informed the others as we walked up to him.

"What's happening here?" Kyle inquired as we stopped in front of the civilian.

"There's been a mutiny at the camp where we got together and did whatever we could to break out so now Skynet's hunting us down," the man explained.

"Which sector were you in?" Kyle asked.

"Sector B, that's where the mutiny happened and it's where we all came from," the man answered.

"What about sector A? Did those people escape too?" Jacob asked and the man shook his head.

"No, sector A's located somewhere else at a football stadium," the man answered and Kyle nodded.

"Football stadium? Alright, we'll find it so time to move," Kyle said.

"Hold on, there's more so the reason we broke out is that we heard that Skynet started executing everyone, and sector A was the first one to go so I'm not sure there's anyone left to save," the man added and Jacob's eyes widened in horror.

"What?" Jacob gasped and Kyle hardened his eyes.

"We'll have to find that out for ourselves so let's move," Kyle ordered, prompting the rest of us to stay behind him as we continued forward.

Ferro informed the refugees about the extraction point that had been prepared and we kept moving through the ruins, then we made it outside as refugees ran past us and the area around us started getting bombarded by an aerial so we were forced to take cover as explosions erupted around us.

T-800s and armored spiders started showing up from the direction the refugees ran from and we focused fire on them as Jacob and I blasted a few T-800s while Kyle, Ferro, and Evans targeted the armored spiders, taking them down as well.

"Let's get moving!" Kyle shouted and that was our cue to run out of cover and keep moving.

As we kept running, Ferro pointed out an HK tank that was in the distance and I swore under my breath since that was the last thing we needed to deal with right now as we came across T-800s and T-600s but with the refugees running past us while we were in cover, it made it a little difficult since they got in the way and I didn't want to kill civilians by accident.

Drones and armored spiders showed up to also add to the problem and if that wasn't bad enough, I noticed that the HK tank was making its way to the extraction point so if we didn't take care of it, then the refugees would get slaughtered by it but we managed to take care of the Skynet models that were in our way and gave us a little bit of a breathing room.

"Clear! What do we do about those people? We can't just leave them," Ferro said with a look of worry and Evans looked at her.

"I'll get to safety since you need to keep going," Evans offered and Kyle turned his attention to the larger man.

"Are you sure?" Kyle asked and Evans nodded.

"Don't worry about me, just go!" Evans urged and Kyle went to look at the rest of us.

"You heard Evans, let's go!" Kyle shouted and the four of us went to continue forward, Evans wishing Jacob good luck before he went back the way we came to assist the refugees.

We ran through the ruins while it was complete chaos as refugees were running past us and we took cover as an aerial showed up and started bombing the area as it flew above us but then T-800s and T-600s started showing up and we focused on the new threat.

Kyle and Ferro shot a couple and I tossed a pipe bomb at a few more, the explosion damaging them until a few shots from me and Jacob finished them off so we kept moving after that but the problem was that the HK tank wasn't going anywhere and we didn't have eyes on the stadium yet so we needed to scope the area out as we kept moving and took down a few armored spiders until we came across more refugees that were hiding.

"More friendlies," Ferro said as we approached the group that had a few that were badly wounded.

"Shit, we can't leave them like this in their current condition, sir," I stated as the refugees gave us pleading looks filled with fear.

"Please, you can't leave us here!" one of the refugees begged and Kyle looked at Jacob as I hurried over to one of the refugees that were injured and took out a med kit.

"Hold on, I'm gonna help you with that wound so hold still," I said gently as I started applying first aid to the refugee while Jacob approached Kyle.

"So, this what we're going to do, Adam, Ferro, and I are staying here to make sure that these people are escorted to safety while you do a recon of the area and report back when you find the stadium since running around like that is getting us nowhere, understood?" Kyle instructed and Jacob nodded.

"Yes sir," Jacob replied as I was helping the injured as best I could but I didn't have enough med kits for everyone so I looked back at Kyle and Ferro while the former was informing Evans about the situation.

"Reese, Ferro, I'm going to need some help here because I don't have enough med kits for everyone," I stated urgently as Jacob had left and the others went to assist me with patching up the injured.

While we were taking care of the wounded, Evans reported in that he was three minutes out and I tried to keep the injured calm when we started taking fire and managed to get the injured refugees to safety but then Evans reported in that he was under heavy fire and that the HK tank was heading our way, much to my alarm.

We had no choice but to change locations since we didn't have the firepower to deal with something like that, apart from a few can grenades but we would have to get close to use them on the HK tank and we couldn't put the civilians at risk, so we helped move the injured while also taking care of any threats that come our way.

"Reese, I've got a visual of the stadium," Jacob said on the radio and Kyle went to respond.

"Roger that, regroup on us since we need to concentrate our efforts," Kyle ordered as I kept my rifle raised and aimed around for more threats.

"Copy," Jacob responded until he stopped talking after that.

We kept moving as I assisted an injured refugee from time to time when Evans informed us that the HK tank was in the way and he couldn't get any closer because of that, so we had no choice but to destroy the massive Skynet model since we were screwed if we didn't but we managed to get the refugees into a bunch of ruins.

"Ferro, make sure those people stay put so are the can grenades ready?" Kyle asked.

"Getting them now!" Ferro called back as this situation was starting to become familiar to me but I didn't know why.

"Alright, we're taking that thing down so Ferro, Adam, and I are going dark," Kyle stated as Ferro showed up with the can grenades and he gestured for me and Ferro to follow him.

We moved through the ruins and went into a small space as we crawled through it and then we stopped moving while gazing out to see the HK tank approaching the area and that's when it hit me, this was Kyle's nightmare that was shown in the first movie so I was shocked by that but this was an opportunity to save Ferro from her fate.

I tensed at the sound of the giant machine's treads crushing skulls and other old bones that littered the ground so I don't think I would ever forget that sound for as long as I lived, then I was tapped on the shoulder and looked at Kyle, who signaled me and Ferro to move up.

I nodded and we started crawling through the small space while I was glad that I wasn't claustrophobic right now and the skulls I moved aside weren't helping either, though we left the small space and started moving from cover to cover while trying not to be seen.

We kept moving and I climbed across the hood of a wrecked car while staying low when we ducked into cover beside another car as plasma fire raged around us when an aerial started to show up and we were forced to jump down into a hole that had a few refugees hiding in the ruins we were in.

We hid as the searchlight shined into the hole and didn't move an inch as the refugees were huddling up with terrified looks on their faces, but then the aerial started leaving the area and the light disappeared so Kyle signaled me and Ferro to keep moving.

We nodded and stayed low as we were right behind Kyle and climbed out of the ruins, moving fast and keeping our heads down as plasma fire and explosions kept happening while the three of us passed wrecked cars and rubble when we stopped to take cover once we were close enough to the HK tank.

We took out can grenades and primed them before Kyle threw his at the tank and so did I as Ferro went to do the same while she tossed hers when she was spotted, but I quickly grabbed her by the back of the uniform and yanked out of the way just in time as plasma blasts struck the area where she used to be.

Ferro sent me a thankful nod just as we ran out of cover and the can grenades detonated, blowing up the HK tank as we sprinted as fast as we could when Evans arrived in the car and braked to a stop, then the large man went to man the plasma turret as Kyle took the wheel, I took the passenger seat, and Ferro took the backseat.

Kyle slammed his foot on the gas and the car sped away from the scene when an aerial started pursuing us and it fired its guns at us while Evans shot back with the turret but because the ride was bumpy, he was having trouble hitting it as Kyle tried swerving to avoid the plasma fire.

I knew what was coming next so I grabbed onto something just as a plasma blast sent the car flying onto its side as I was thrown onto Kyle and Ferro was sent flying out of the car as Evans was killed instantly, and then I was dazed and in pain as everything hurt and I couldn't move while Jacob was yelling for us on the radio.

Kyle was trying to push me off him and grunted while the car started to set on fire and I let out a weak groan while a wet sensation started running down my head so that was a sign I hit my head as Kyle started screaming while I thought I could hear Jacob calling out to us close by.

My ears were ringing so I couldn't quite tell what he was shouting but I was grabbed by the wrists and pulled out through the opening where the windshield used to be as I could see that it was Jacob as he dragged me away from the burning wreck, then he hurried back over to the car and pulled Kyle out as well as the ringing cleared up and I groaned while slowly sitting up and clutching my bleeding head.

"Oh...fucking shit," I muttered dizzily as my head and my ribs hurt like hell when I looked at where Ferro landed, seeing that she wasn't moving and my heart sank.

I didn't see signs of her breathing so it was official, she died on impact from possibly a broken neck so I felt frustrated that I wasn't able to save her from her fate and I was fucking pissed, wanting some payback as someone tapped me on the shoulder and I looked to see that Kyle was holding out a hand so I took it and he helped me up.

"You good, Sullivan?" Kyle asked, looking worse for wear as he had a few cuts on him that were bleeding and he was covered in dirt.

"Ready for payback, sir," I stated as I managed to shake my dizziness off and Kyle nodded.

"Roger that, let's move," Kyle said and the three of us started to make our way to the stadium.

I just couldn't believe we were the only ones left and I tried to change things but Ferro and Evans died anyway, which made my hatred of Skynet grow even bigger so I had half a mind to go after it and empty my whole mag into the core of the AI itself for all the horror and suffering it's caused.

We came across some silverfish and I was all too happy to carry out my vengeance on the bastards as the three of us blasted them to pieces but I still wasn't satisfied since I wanted to smash every last one of these metal motherfuckers into junk for taking so many lives and having people live in fear for decades.

Pretty soon, we were forced to take cover to avoid a T-800 patrol as they passed the row of debris and wrecked cars we were hiding behind while an aerial flew above us, then we started moving quietly to avoid being detected since even though I wanted revenge on those bastards, getting into a fight against that many T-800s was a death sentence.

We passed by the patrol and once they were gone, we resumed sprinting to our objective as we avoided another aerial and started arriving at the stadium when we saw a T-47 and another large T-800 patrol up ahead that was starting to head our way.

We ducked out of sight and used the rubble and debris to sneak past them since a head-on fight was suicide but we got past them and started heading into the stadium as we came across a laser barrier, which Kyle took care of by hacking into the computer and shutting it down as we progressed.

We got ambushed as we entered one section of the stadium and took care of the T-600s before heading deeper into the prison camp, eventually coming across cages full of prisoners as they started looking hopeful when they saw us.

"It's okay, we're all going to get you out of there," Kyle reassured the prisoners as we moved past each cage and I was sickened to see them locked up like animals, just like how the Nazis locked up the Jewish people, colored people, and homosexuals or those who were sympathizers to them.

It didn't take long until we entered a massive area and Kyle pointed out the main computer that was up ahead but I knew it wouldn't be that easy since Skynet wouldn't leave a key area unprotected, though we made it to the computer and I was horrified and revolted to see bones and gore in a large pile below a massive grinder that was up ahead but Jacob hacked into the main terminal and shut down the laser grids when I was greatly alarmed to see a centurion appearing from two major doors that slid open.

"Fuck me, centurion!" I shouted and we all quickly took cover.

As we were taking fire, freed prisoners stormed the room with plasma weaponry and started to assist so I was relieved by that as I went to take out my RPG while the others were laying down the hate on that metal bastard when I popped out of cover and fired a rocket at the massive Skynet model.

The rocket impacted the centurion and started to damage it but it wasn't enough so I alternated between ducking back into cover to reload and popping out to fire a rocket at the centurion until I ran out of ammo for the RPG and put it away, throwing pipe bombs and can grenades at the massive Skynet model as the explosions and constant plasma fire kept on damaging it until a few more shots to its optic caused it to start exploding until it was destroyed.

"Fucking finally...asshole," I muttered irritably as I regrouped with Kyle and Jacob.

"It's not over yet so let's find your father, Rivers," Kyle stated and we went back the way we came.

Jacob started asking around if anybody had seen his father Frank while Kyle and I did the same, hearing responses of how they hadn't seen him or didn't know who he was but we didn't give up and kept searching for Jacob's father until I started getting frustrated while we were searching the various cages.

"Reese, I'm not seeing him anywhere so where the hell is he?" I wondered while trying to ignore the terrible conditions some people were in, but this place will always be seared into my mind.

"Reese? Kyle Reese?" an elderly raspy voice questioned weakly and we quickly looked at who said that before entering a cell and a lone elderly man was inside, the man practically skin and bones as he looked terrible with cuts and bruises and he was resting against a wall.

"I'm Sgt. Kyle Reese," Kyle confirmed as we kneeled in front of him.

"I've got a message for you," the man wheezed as he held up what appeared to be an open envelope, then Kyle took it as I gazed at the broken shell of a human being solemnly.

"I kept it..." the man gurgled and I knew there was no saving him since because of the condition he was currently in, he was too weak so it wouldn't be long until he died from whatever kind of hell Skynet put him through but Jacob widened his eyes.

"Dad?" Jacob questioned as he looked horrified by the state of his father, who didn't appear to hear him.

"I kept it...I kept my promise...I found him...my son...he'd be proud," Frank muttered as Jacob went to place a hand on the frail man's shoulder.

"I am," Jacob said with his voice cracking as he started tearing up and Frank looked at him, seeming to recognize him but then he exhaled and slumped his head as he died before our eyes.

'Fuck...another victim of Skynet so when will this hell ever end?' I thought as I tried not to cry from the terrible loss that just happened.

I heard Jacob stifling sobs as I stood up and walked away without a word, trying to keep my composure as I let out a shaky sigh and even though we lost people today, it made me even more determined to take down Skynet so that people wouldn't have to keep dying or living in fear and maybe, once that fucking AI is gone, kids will have a chance to be kids again and we won't have to keep running and hiding.

It was that thought that had been on my mind as Jacob went to bury his father while Kyle and I waited for him as freed prisoners and refugees alike were heading out, heading who knows where so I hoped they make it as Jacob regrouped with us and we went back to the car.

Thankfully, it was still intact enough to be fixed so we got it working again and buried Ferro and Evans, taking their dog tags with us and then we started driving back to South Division as we were mostly quiet during the drive back but then Kyle looked at him.

"Rivers? Everything alright?" Kyle spoke up and Jacob looked at him.

"Just trying to collect my thoughts, sarge," Jacob said quietly.

"Understandable, so once we're back in the shelter, I'll put a word in with Baron to ease up on you and Sullivan over the next couple of days since we all need a break," Kyle offered and I sent him a thankful look.

"Thank you," I replied as Jacob looked like he had something on his mind.

"There's something I wanted to ask you..." Jacob trailed off hesitantly.

"Shoot," Kyle said while keeping his eyes on the road.

"What was in that envelope?" Jacob asked and Kyle went to reach into his pocket with one hand.

"Let me show you and Adam so it's a message...from John and this is what he wanted me to have," Kyle said as he passed Jacob a small thin object and I had an idea as to what that was.

"Why?" Jacob inquired and Kyle sighed.

"I don't know, maybe because I sometimes need to remind myself of what we're fighting for," Kyle replied as I went to take a look at what he gave Jacob.

It was the old faded picture of Sarah and her dog Pugsly but I froze when I saw a second person sitting in the passenger seat of her jeep, the man looking unfamiliar as he had short black hair and was wearing sunglasses and a grey t-shirt from what I could see.

'What the fuck?' I thought in complete shock.

This wasn't right, there wasn't supposed to be a second person with Sarah in the photo so what the hell was going on? Seeing the man in that photo with Sarah had me realize that something had completely changed in the original timeline, whether it was because of my very presence or something else but what was in this photo told me that a huge alteration had happened somehow and I didn't know how to wrap my head around it.

At that moment, I realized what my role was supposed to be in this mission so it was quite clear that John wanted me to see the man in that photo but I had no idea why since there was no telling what that man was thinking, though I had a feeling I would find out soon so I turned my head away from the photo and gazed out at the ruins as I had a feeling that something big was going to happen soon.

Chapter Text

After Kyle, Jacob, and I made it back to South Divison, we went to report to Baron how the mission went and Kyle requested that Jacob and I take a few day's leave to recover from the losses we experienced and Baron accepted the request, giving me and Jacob a few days off while Kyle left to report back to John.

I spent that time either interacting with Jennifer and the others or being deep in thought about what I'd discovered since something wasn't right, mostly because there wasn't supposed to be a second person in Sarah's photo when I realized something at that moment.

This wasn't a fictional universe anymore so chances are that things are going to play out a lot differently than what I've seen on TV, which meant that I can't just rely on past knowledge anymore and adapt to other changes that might happen, though it wasn't until a few days later that John Connor himself contacted us and wanted to hear our progress on studying the infiltrator that Jacob and I destroyed.

"I still have to run some tests, so for now, I would say no," Alvin replied after he was asked when he would be done studying the destroyed infiltrator.

"We need some more time, Connor," Baron said, currently speaking to John who was on the other end of the radio.

"I know you don't want to hear this, Commander, but if there's one person who can help us, it's Dr. Mack," John said, his voice not sounding familiar since it didn't sound like Christian Bale's or Nick Stahl's or even Jason Clarke's.

"Mack? We don't even know if he's still alive," Alvin pointed out in confusion.

"He is, he's in Hollywood Hills. We knew a time would come when we'd need him again so we've kept an eye on him," John explained, and Baron started looking pissed.

"Wait, you've been watching him without telling me?" Baron snapped angrily.

"You've let your emotions cloud your judgment before, Commander, which is why I decided that Mack's whereabouts were no longer your concern," John stated and Baron started pacing.

"This is bullshit, he can't just magically fix all of our problems! He's a man, not a god! A man that makes mistakes!" Baron shouted lividly, and I'd never seen her this pissed before so I'm getting the feeling that there was bad history between her and this Dr. Mack person.

"That's enough, Commander," John said sternly and Baron sent a nasty glare at the radio.

"You know what happened last time so he's the reason Perry's dead!" Baron yelled angrily, and my eyes widened at that because she was bringing up Commander Perry who had been mentioned by Kyle in the first movie so I wondered what happened to the guy since I hadn't met him during my entire time in this dimension, guess I know why now.

"I said that's enough. Sgt. Rivers, Sgt. Sullivan," John said and I felt a little awkward since I had no idea what to say to a legend.

"Yes sir," Jacob said as he and I approached the radio.

"What is it, sir?" I asked as Jacob and I stopped in front of the radio.

"Rivers, Tec-Com believes that being marked for termination is a badge of honor, a sign that we're doing something right, and as for you Sullivan, what's interesting is that you have been marked for capture and that is something to look into since Skynet is interested in you and wants you for a reason.

Knowing that you both have been marked for different reasons is all I need to trust you two with handling this mission and Commander Baron will fill you in on the details, so good luck soldiers. Over and out," John told us until the radio went silent and Baron scoffed.

"Looks like you two are going to Hollywood Hills. Dr. Edwin Mack is the one who taught us how to use Skynet's weapons, so there's a chance he can do it again. Bring that second-generation plasma rifle to him and see if he's able to reprogram it.

If we want to use Skynet's weapons, then we need to bypass their encryption lockouts," Baron said.

"How will we find him?" Jacob inquired.

"He's obsessed with surveillance so when you get there, look for any cameras, biometric sensors, or any other tech stuff. He should be around. That's it," Baron told us and I nodded.

"Okay, we'll get our gear together and head out," I replied while Alvin frowned.

"Sure, let's trust someone who's called "Doctor Death", which won't bite us in the ass at all. In the meantime, I'll see what I can learn from the new CPU we acquired from that infiltrator. This could be the breakthrough that we've all been waiting for, and I'll need to concentrate so please don't disturb me," Alvin said, and Jacob nodded until the scientist went back to studying the CPU that had been removed from the infiltrator and I looked at Baron.

"Before we go, is there anything we need to know about Dr. Mack?" I asked, causing Baron to scowl.

"Only that he can't be trusted and he's highly manipulative, so you need to stay cautious," Baron warned and I nodded.

"Okay, good to know so are we dismissed?" I inquired and Baron gestured for us to go.

Now that we were dismissed, I went to pick up the second-generation plasma rifle and strapped it to my back as Jacob talked to Baron for a little bit until he was finished and followed me out of the command room, only to see Erin waiting for us.

"Jacob, Adam, do you have a minute?" Erin asked, and I was curious as to what she wanted.

"Of course," Jacob said.

"I've heard that the two of you are going to Hollywood Hills...well, with Baron yelling like that, the whole shelter heard. You wanted me to tell you if I needed anything so here it is...when you get to Hollywood Hills, could you stop by my old house?

It's near the Griffith Park tennis courts so I wonder if Peter went there and left something for me. I know he'd be stupid to go there now since it's behind the annihilation line, but then again, he was always full of stupid ideas," Erin requested and I looked thoughtful.

"We'll see what we can do," I said and Erin smiled thankfully.

"Thank you," Erin replied before walking away.

Jacob and I separated to head to our cots so I went to get my gear and we met back up soon after, though we headed to the Quartermaster to drop off some stuff we didn't need and get a few supplies for the mission until we later came across Jennifer, who was keeping warm by a fire and she noticed us.

"Guys, I didn't see you there," Jennifer said.

"Hey Jennifer, I just wanted to let you know that Jacob and I are heading out so let Patrick know that we'll be back soon," I informed her and she nodded.

"Okay, I'm going out on a scavenging mission myself so I'll let him know before I leave," Jennifer replied.

"Speaking of Patrick, where is he?" Jacob asked.

"I'm taking him with me so he's getting ready, figured it's time for him to see what's out there," Jennifer answered but I noticed that she seemed distracted about something as Jacob cleared his throat.

"I'll be waiting for you at the entrance of the shelter, Adam," Jacob told me until he left and I returned my attention to Jennifer.

"Is everything okay? You seem lost in thought," I pointed out and Jennifer sighed.

"Nothing can get past you, can it? I've been thinking about the day we met, but I never told you how we really ended up there," Jennifer admitted and I sent her a reassuring look.

"Don't worry, you can tell me anything," I stated and Jennifer nodded.

"I know I can, that's why you're the first person I'm telling this to...that day, loud hammering woke me up, and when I came downstairs, I saw my father nailing the windows shut... through the cracks, I saw them coming.

Hundreds of metal heads and their red eyes, but even though they're just empty shells, I could feel the hate radiating from them," Jennifer explained.

"What did you do?" I questioned.

"I made Patrick stay upstairs and went back to talk to my father so we argued for a minute or two, and I tried to pull him away from the window. He pushed me away so I tried it again but he shoved me and this time, I fell.

I didn't recognize him as he was reaching for his shotgun and said I shouldn't worry about the machines, that they wouldn't hurt us and I don't even remember how, but the gun was already in my hands. I closed my eyes and went someplace else, didn't even hear the shot and I didn't hear Patrick's steps either," Jennifer told me and I looked shocked.

"Oh god, he saw you?" I asked and Jennifer let out a shaky sigh.

"He did...he was staring at me as if I was a stranger, didn't scream or cry, just stared. I threw the gun away, grabbed Patrick, and tried not to notice the hole in my father's unmoving chest...as we ran, I could hear them coming so we found somewhere to hide, then you and Jacob came.

I wanted to tell someone about all this but I was afraid to," Jennifer said and my eyes softened.

"I'm glad you did, keeping something like that bottled up isn't a good thing," I pointed out and Jennifer nodded.

"I know, we talk about how heartless the machines are and I started to think that maybe I was too, probably would've convinced myself of that if it wasn't for you keeping me sane so thank you for everything since I never thought I would find a friend in times like these," Jennifer told me gratefully.

"It's no trouble, compassion and understanding is what keeps us going in this world because without that, who are we?" I pointed out and Jennifer smiled softly.

"True, I'll see you and Jacob when you get back," Jennifer said, and after our conversation was over, I headed to the entrance of the shelter to meet up with Jacob and we left the shelter after that.

We left the shelter and traveled through the ruins for a time, avoiding Skynet patrols while taking shortcuts and it wasn't long before we managed to arrive at Hollywood Hills as we were approaching it through a forest and a familiar voice suddenly started contacting us on Jacob's radio.

"Jacob, Adam, are you receiving me?" the stranger inquired, making me and Jacob stop before we shared a look of surprise since we thought he was dead but Jacob reached for the radio.

"You're alive!" Jacob gasped in shock.

"No time for that. Do whatever it takes to get everyone out of that shelter, understand? They're not safe there," the stranger warned us and I knew why he was doing that since he was hinting that the shelter was going to be attacked by the infiltrator.

"What? Why?" Jacob questioned in complete confusion but the stranger didn't respond so I assumed that he stopped contacting us and Jacob scowled.

"Jacob, there might be a very good reason as to why he's warning us about that since everything he's told us so far, albeit cryptic, has been coming true so maybe we should listen to him," I pointed out and Jacob sighed.

"But what does he mean when he told us to get everyone out of the shelter and that it wasn't safe?" Jacob wondered and I shrugged.

"No idea, it's possible something pretty bad is going to happen soon so we should consider that since he sounded pretty serious," I stated, lying about why he was warning us and I hated that I had to lie to Jacob but there's no telling what kind of consequences might occur by revealing that I knew future events that will happen so I kept my mouth shut about that.

"Good point, I'll keep that in mind for now," Jacob said as we moved through the forest and arrived at a section of Hollywood Hills that had a few abandoned shops and rusty cars.

I used my lockpicks the unlock the trunk of an old police car and found a shotgun and other resources inside, so I took them and stuffed them into my bag as Jacob went to search what used to be a jewelry store until we regrouped and continued our way down an alley until we saw a surveillance camera that was on the side of the jewelry store and appeared to be functional.

"Jacob, look," I said and pointed at the camera.

"That camera...Dr. Mack, is that you?! The resistance needs your help!" Jacob called out and the camera moved until it was facing us.

"Hello? Dr. Mack?" I questioned but no one responded and Jacob aimed his plasma rifle at the camera.

"It would be a shame to lose that camera," Jacob threatened and I was about to scold him for threatening someone who could help us but I didn't even get the chance to.

"Now, why would you do that?" a voice questioned on Jacob's radio and I took it so that I could speak to this person, who I assume was Dr. Mack.

"I'm sorry about him, he's on edge right now but we do need your help so could you come out from wherever you're holed up? Skynet has developed a new terminator model called an infiltrator, so we need help since you are knowledgeable in Skynet tech," I reasoned.

"You and your friend have seen one already?" Mack asked.

"We've captured one and you have the knowledge we need to figure out how it works so we really need your help," I stated and the radio was silent for a little bit.

"How do I know you two aren't infiltrators? You've seen them, how incredibly lifelike they are so you should understand my concerns, now head up that hill. If you want me to help you, then you have to take a test for me," Mack said and Jacob looked speechless by that.

"Test?" Jacob questioned in bewilderment.

"Yes, to determine whether you two are Terminators or not, and be careful, I'm watching you," Mack warned until he stopped talking to us and I handed back the radio to Jacob.

"This is so fucking stupid," Jacob grumbled as we started to make our way up the nearby hill.

"Jacob, we don't have a choice but to do what he says if we want his help so just suck it up for now," I said as we made it to the top of the hill.

I could see a few patrolling Skynet troops that started firing at us so we ducked down and I signaled for Jacob to take out a couple of sound decoys and toss them while I took out a couple of my own, then Jacob did the same and we tossed the sound decoys to distract them.

The sound decoys made a loud beeping noise to get the machines' attention and they headed over to them, prompting me and Jacob to take out a can grenade each until we activated them and threw them at the machines, the explosions taking out a few and there were two left that fired at us but well-placed shots destroyed them.

"Oh, they're actually trying to fight you? Very clever way to make me think you two aren't one of them but, unfortunately for you, I'm not that easily fooled," Mack said as we continued forward and dealt with a few silverfish and a couple of spider scouts.

"We don't have time for any of this! We're not robots so just tell us where you are!" Jacob shouted in frustration.

"Living tissue would make you both cybernetic organisms, not robots. Words have meaning, and conversations between human beings would be a lot easier if we all just trusted each other and understood the deeper meaning of what we said.

Keep that in mind during this test," Mack stated as Jacob and I kept moving until we arrived at an old mansion that appeared to have seen better days as it was covered in vegetation in some areas and crumbling in others.

The front gate was rusted shut so we couldn't get in that way, but there was an old car parked at a section of the brick wall that had the top of it missing, which gave us a way in so we went to climb over the wall and found ourselves in the old property.

'Huh, I wonder who used to live here...probably an actor or actress I might've seen in a movie once,' I thought as Jacob and I started making our way to the house.

"This mansion is filled with Terminators, who have been trying to find me for a while now, all eight of them. Well, I guess you two in there make it ten," Mack informed us as we entered the house through the wine cellar and came across laser traps.

"Think you can defuse those?" I asked and Jacob nodded before going to work on defusing the laser traps.

Once he was done with that, we headed upstairs and found ourselves on the first floor as I heard the sounds of T-800s patrolling the inside of the building so I took out a termination knife and Jacob did the same before we moved through the house and took care of the threats inside and outside of it as we soon found ourselves in the back where an empty pool was located.

"Too bad there's no water in that pool since I'd have you both jump in and see if you float. Wait, that's a different test," Mack said and I grimaced when Jacob started scowling.

"Hey, just put up with it for now, okay?" I told him and Jacob sighed.

We made our way to a crumbled section of the wall and went into the forest again as it was a short walk when we came across an old theater that hadn't seen any use since Judgment Day so I wondered what it could've been like, just being there and watching a show before witnessing nuclear warheads raining down from the sky, the thought making me shiver.

"Great, you're here so get on that stage, quick," Mack instructed so Jacob and I followed his instructions by getting up onto the stage and we could see the security camera aimed at us.

"Good, now wait here for a moment," Mack told us.

"Um, you going to explain to us why we're here?" I inquired.

"On the stage, you mean? Um, because I want you two to...recite a poem. That's right, that's why I got you on this stage, to invoke the fear of public speaking in you so that it will allow me to check your emotional responses.

Very important in these sorts of tests, so go ahead and recite a poem," Mack said and I flinched.

"Wait, what?! I don't know shit about poetry!" I exclaimed in disbelief.

"Well, good thing you have your friend here so he can do it," Mack said a little snidely, and now my patience was starting to wear thin on this guy as Jacob sighed.

"In the shadows where we live, searching for compassion," Jacob said unenthusiastically.

"Oh, you're actually doing it? I wasn't really expecting that...so, you've been taught to obey orders? I see...oh, now wait and be quiet!" Mack hissed suddenly just as the sound of an aerial was getting close so Jacob and I didn't make a sound as it came into view and hovered nearby.

"They regularly patrol this area so don't let them see you," Mack warned and I rolled my eyes as the aerial flew away.

"Wasn't planning to," I muttered while Jacob frowned.

"So, you know we're not Terminators?" Jacob questioned irritably.

"Of course I do, they are way better shots than either of you are," Mack replied and now I started scowling.

"If that's the case, then what the hell's the point of us doing all of this?" I asked and Mack sighed.

"Because I want you two to grab something for me before I help you, so turn left when you leave the theater and you'll find a plane crash site there. My spider scout should be stuck somewhere around so just grab it and bring it back to me in one piece," Mack instructed, then Jacob and I went to our left and started to make our way out of the theatre after that.

Chapter Text

As Jacob and I headed to the exit, we kept our eyes and ears open when we left the building and arrived in Hollywood Hills, seeing that Skynet's troops were there.

"Skynet completely took over this place...we could do something about that," Jacob told me quietly and I nodded.

"Okay, we separate like before and cover more ground," I replied and we went off in different directions after that.

I made my way through Hollywood Hills while avoiding Skynet patrols that were too dangerous for me to take on alone when I saw a Skynet outpost nearby.

I could take care of that to weaken the AI's hold on this place so I started making my way over to it, making sure to be extra careful since T-800s were patrolling in the outpost.

I stayed low and quiet as I entered the outpost, avoiding the T-800s and turrets during my trek into the lower level of the outpost, though I managed to not get spotted as I found the plasma generator.

I took out a makeshift explosive and planted it on the generator, quietly making my way out of the outpost before taking out a detonator once I was a safe distance away and blowing up the generator, which destroyed the outpost.

"Fuck you, Skynet," I muttered before leaving the area since that was bound to cause attention.

I kept on the move while avoiding Skynet patrols that were heading to the destroyed outpost until I found myself approaching a house, and I recalled that this was the place Erin had mentioned, so maybe her husband Peter was here.

With that in mind, I started making my way to the house and was forced to take cover when I saw a T-800 patrolling inside the house, which wasn't a good sign.

Hopefully, if Peter had been here, he was long gone so I carefully made it into the house and took care of the T-800 with a termination knife, as well as another one that was nearby.

With both Skynet models no longer functioning, I started to search the house for Peter or maybe a note to tell me where he had gone so I checked the first floor and didn't find anything but I did find a note on the second floor.

It was from Peter and it talked about how he left instructions for Erin in his old locker that was located at where he used to work before Judgment Day happened.

I had no idea where he used to work before Judgment Day happened, but I searched the surrounding area to see if I could find it after I left the house.

I checked the surrounding area and soon found an old crumbling building that used to be a tennis club that was next to the destroyed outpost, then I searched the building and found the locker rooms but I faltered when I found the dead body of an elderly man inside with destroyed spider scouts strewn around him.

"Oh shit, I hope you're not Peter," I muttered and went to check the body, finding a letter addressed to Erin from Peter as it talked about how he was leaving for Mexico and hoped that he would reunite with her so I swore under my breath and looked at the dead body of Erin's husband.

"You poor son of a bitch, dying without knowing if your wife was alive or not, so I hope you're in a better place now," I muttered as I lifted the dead man's glasses so that I could close his eyes.

I didn't know what to do since Erin deserved closure but if I were to tell her about what happened to her husband, she would have no reason to leave the bunker and might get killed by the infiltrator that storms the bunker to massacre everyone inside.

I spent a few minutes being conflicted until I came to a decision, and as much as I hated it, I'd have to lie to Erin about her husband's fate to get her to leave the bunker so that she wouldn't die.

I sighed as I left the tennis club and decided to regroup with Jacob as I started making my way to the crash site until I found my fellow resistance soldier waiting for me.

"Hey, did you find anything?" Jacob inquired, and I frowned.

"I found Erin's husband...he didn't make it," I said grimly and Jacob swore under his breath.

"I was hoping you wouldn't say that, so what do we tell Erin when we get back?" Jacob asked, making me rub the back of my neck.

"As much as I don't like it, we'll need to lie to her to make sure she leaves the bunker since I found a letter on Peter that said he was going to be in Mexico," I replied and Jacob frowned.

"Are you sure we should trust what the guy on the radio said, about how we need to get everyone out of the bunker?" Jacob questioned.

"Even though he's been cryptic and doesn't give us a lot of answers, everything he's told us has been right so far and had happened just the way he said it would.

So, if he's warning us to get everyone out of the bunker, then he must have a damn good reason for it since his warning indicates that something will happen in the bunker and that Jennifer and the others can't be in there once it does," I stated logically, causing Jacob to look thoughtful.

"When you put it like that, you have a point so we'll try to get everyone out of the bunker before whatever happens, happens," Jacob agreed until we went to the crash site, finding Mack's spider scout that was on its back before I picked it up.

"Dr. Mack? We got what you want," Jacob informed the man on his radio.

"Good job, I'm in my vault in one of the buildings up the street, so meet me there," Mack said.

After he was done speaking to us, Jacob and I started making our way back to where we came from and arrived in the neighborhood, searching for the right building and came across what used to be a mansion.

We searched the building and found the cellar before coming across wall mines, making sure to disarm them to clear our path and we soon came across a large vault door that no doubt was the entrance to Mack's lab.

"Dr. Mack? We're here, so can you unlock the door for us, please?" I asked as Jacob and I looked up at the nearby security camera.

Suddenly, the vault door started to unlock until Jacob opened it and we made our way through a corridor as the vault door shut behind us and locked itself, then we entered Mack's lab and I saw a disheveled-looking man with glasses and a lab coat waiting for us.

"I know it looks tempting, but please do not destroy that plasma container since it powers this whole laboratory," Mack said as I spotted a plasma generator that was hooked up nearby and Jacob rolled his eyes.

"Wasn't planning on it," Jacob muttered.

"Sorry for making you two run around like that, but because of the recent increase in Terminator patrols, I couldn't get to that spider scout myself.

Can I see it?" Mack requested and I nodded.

"Here," I replied and handed it to him, which he placed on a nearby table.

"Thank you, so I have a gift as a token of my appreciation. While you two were out looking for my spider scout, I used some leftover parts to make new radios for you both.

I've been picking up your signals for a while now, and I imagine that Skynet has as well, so I've made it harder for them to decipher.

You won't have to worry about it eavesdropping," Mack told us.

"You've been listening in, so you know why we're here?" Jacob inquired and Mack nodded.

"Yes, now let me see that gun," Mack requested, and I removed the plasma gun from my back.

"Here you go, it's a little heavy," I said as I handed the gun over to Mack, who took it and he examined it with a look of fascination.

"What a beauty...I have to tell you if Skynet wasn't so gung-ho about killing everything...what's interesting about it is that the matter inside is far more condensed.

That way it releases more energy on discharge, dealing much more damage and its plasma blast is also violet, so that's different," Mack explained.

"Can you bypass the encryption lockouts so that we can use it? Alvin couldn't," Jacob asked and Mack scoffed.

"Alvin couldn't bypass an egg timer if his life depended on it, so I'll do it but it's not that simple. First, you'll have to bring me Skynet's latest security codes," Mack said.

"Security codes?" I inquired.

"They will allow us to access Skynet's mainframe, but it changes them regularly so I need you both to connect to any HK unit and download the newest security codes.

To do that, you'll need my code reader. When I was...excused from the shelter, they made me leave all my equipment behind, so Alvin should have my code reader," Mack said.

"Okay, is that everything?" Jacob asked.

"As far as the security codes go, yes," Mack replied.

"Then we'll be leaving," I told him before Mack perked up.

"Actually, I've got a question about that infiltrator you have back at the shelter so is it intact, or more specifically, its neural net CPU?"

I've been hacking Skynet's units and I'm noticing similarities in their patterns, so I think I'm ready to reprogram the CPU from that infiltrator since it's more powerful than any other," Mack spoke up before Jacob and I could leave.

"Should we ask Baron about that too?" Jacob questioned and Mack quickly shook his head.

"No, no, no, she can't know about this because would not approve of it, so I know how this sounds, but you need to steal it for me," Mack stated, causing me and Jacob to look at him as if he were nuts.

"Are you fucking serious?! Baron will kick the shit out of us and have us tossed out of the shelter if we tried to steal the CPU and she found out about it!" I exclaimed in disbelief.

"I'm the only one that can reprogram the chip because, for some reason, Skynet has started to learn at a geometric rate! We need to prepare ourselves for whatever's coming and I believe that having an infiltrator on our side will give us the advantage.

Just think about it," Mack reasoned, and I knew he was right since all hell was going to break loose soon and the resistance would need every advantage they could get as Jacob and I took our new radios from Mack and Jacob contacted Baron.

"Commander?" Jacob spoke into the radio.

"Rivers, what's the status?" Baron inquired.

"Mack's alive, he'll help us but he needs a device he left at the shelter," Jacob replied.

"Alright, we can do that so you and Sullivan report to me when you get back," Baron ordered.

"Over and out," Jacob said and he and I went to leave Mack's lab after that.

For a while, Jacob and I traveled across the ruins of LA and it didn't take long for us to arrive back at the bunker but imagine our surprise when we came across the stranger, who was waiting for us at the entrance.

"I have to say, you two are doing quite well without my help," the stranger said, making Jacob look bewildered.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Jacob questioned.

"You two have to get the ones you care about to leave the shelter because they will be in great danger if either of you don't do what I say, but remember, that has to stay between the three of us," the stranger told us.

"Why?" I inquired, despite knowing why Jacob and I needed to get Jennifer and the others to leave the shelter.

"Because things need to play out the way they are supposed to, that's why. I've been sent here from the very beginning and each of your friends already knows the reason they need to leave.

You just have to remind them," the stranger told us.

"Can we tell Commander Baron?" Jacob asked and the stranger shook his head.

"No, she won't allow it, and then she will start to question you both and keep you two away from your missions, which can't happen," the stranger empathized.

"Okay, who the hell are you? You seem to know a lot and somehow have knowledge of events that will happen," I pointed out and the stranger sighed.

"I'm sorry, but I can't tell you and Rivers that because it could change the choices that you two make in the future and we can't have that, so whatever happens, neither of you can know my identity, not yet at least," the stranger said and that caused a revelation.

This man, was it possible that he was either Jacob or I from the future? Time travel was possible in this universe so it stands to reason that the stranger could be either me or Jacob from an alternate version of the future war.

If that was the case, then this changes everything and explains a lot but I didn't want to create a major change by having Jacob do something that could make things worse after revealing that this man was either me or him from the future, so I kept my mouth shut.

"Do you know anything about a CPU that Mack wants us to steal?" Jacob asked.

"I do. If hacked, we could take over an infiltrator, and Dr. Mack is capable of doing that since I'm not so sure if Alvin can, so I think you should steal it," the stranger said.

"I think I'm more confused than I was before," Jacob admitted with a puzzled look.

"Just stay focused, we'll see each other soon," the stranger said before walking away.

Jacob only looked confused as we headed to the shelter and made our way inside, then we separated so that we could work on getting Jennifer and the others to leave so I went to find Erin.

"Hey, Adam, did you or Jacob see Jennifer on your way here?" Erin asked.

"She isn't here?" I questioned.

"She hasn't come back yet, but I'm sure she's fine. About...Hollywood Hills, how did it go?" Erin inquired and I swallowed down the guilt I started feeling as I went to answer.

"I've been to Hollywood Hills with Jacob and I found your old house," I replied and Erin perked up.

"Did you?" Erin asked and I nodded.

"Yeah, your husband left for Mexico," I lied and Erin looked confused.

"What are you talking about?" Erin questioned.

"I found a letter in your house addressed to you from Peter, and it says he's heading there to look for you," I said as I handed the letter to Erin, who looked through it and sighed.

"He couldn't find me when I was right under his nose, so how's he going to find me in Mexico? What a sweet fool," Erin muttered.

"If you want my advice, you should go look for him," I told her and Erin nodded.

"You're right, I have to find him before he hurts himself. Baron's not going to like that, but she never scared me so thank you for finding him for me, Adam," Erin told me thankfully and I nodded, feeling so much guilt for giving her false hope despite it being necessary to save her life.

I walked away and thought about how I should get the CPU since Alvin was most likely in his lab and wouldn't let me near it, then I recalled the boombox I helped get for Ryan so the music should distract Alvin enough for me to get into his lab and grab the CPU.

Now that I had a plan, I went over to Ryan's workshop and turned on the boombox before turning the volume up, then I quickly left just as I heard Alvin expressing his frustrations and leaving his lab to turn off the boombox.

I took advantage by ducking into his lab and quickly swiping the CPU before leaving the lab, just as Alvin turned off the boombox and made his way back to his lab with an irritated scowl.

Hopefully, he doesn't notice the CPU being missing any time soon since I would be in a shitload of trouble if he were to find out I stole it and reported it to Baron.

Speaking of Baron, Jacob and I needed to report to her since she's not the type of person who likes to be kept waiting so I headed to the command center and Jacob was already there waiting for me, the two of us entering the command center and finding Baron as she sat on the nearby sofa.

"You're back, so how's Hollywood Hills?" Baron inquired.

"Crawling with Terminators," Jacob replied.

"And what about Mack? How's he? Was he compliant?" Baron asked with narrowed eyes.

"He's willing to help us, but he needs Skynet's security codes if we want him to reprogram that plasma rifle," I told her and Baron nodded.

"Fair enough, talk to Alvin about that," Baron said.

"Okay, we will," Jacob replied.

"Did Mack say anything else?" Baron questioned.

"No, that's pretty much it," I answered.

"Okay, talk to Alvin about those security codes and talk to Ryan, that buggy's been sitting there broken for too long so see if something's going on since I got a suspicion that he's hiding something from me," Baron ordered and Jacob and I nodded before we went to leave.

We left the command center and started making our way to Alvin's lab as I held a thoughtful frown, not saying anything as we soon arrived at our destination and saw Alvin studying the destroyed infiltrator.

"Alvin, sorry to disturb you but we need to speak to you about something important," I announced and Alvin looked annoyed but he sighed.

"Fine, make it quick," Alvin grumbled.

"So, Mack told us that we'll need some sort of device to download Skynet's security codes from an HK, so do you have it?" Jacob asked and Alvin grimaced.

"Yes, about that...do either of you remember that day in downtown? I do, it was very traumatic and because of that, I may have forgotten to bring back some things," Alvin said sheepishly and I started looking at him in dismay.

"Including the device?" I asked hesitantly.

"And the quantum battery that powers it, so neither of you will be able to use it without it," Alvin replied and Jacob sighed in exasperation.

"So, I guess we're off to downtown," Jacob grumbled.

"Yes, you do that," Alvin remarked and I sent him an unamused look for that before Jacob and I left the lab, going to find Ryan and we soon found him near the buggy.

"Hey guys, what's happening?" Ryan greeted.

"Baron wanted us to ask about that buggy, so is there a problem?" I inquired and Ryan sighed.

"Yeah, she's been nagging me to fix the electronics in this piece of shit for a while now, so do you think you could help me with it?" Ryan requested, making Jacob and I chuckle.

"Why are you asking us? You're the mechanic," Jacob pointed out and Ryan frowned.

"Listen, I'm good with tools so you give me a car with a gasoline engine and I'll make it run, but this electronic shit? I don't know anything about that and hell, most of my life I've lived without electricity," Ryan stated.

"So, why not tell Baron?" I questioned and Ryan grimaced.

"She won't let me cherry-pick my own responsibilities, you and Jacob know that. She'll throw me right out of here if she finds out.

That's why I need your help, so the quartermaster will give you all the parts and tell you two what to do, just think about it," Ryan told us, prompting me and Jacob to head to the quartermaster.

"We're here to pick up parts for that buggy," Jacob requested and the quartermaster frowned suspiciously.

"Wasn't Ryan supposed to take care of that? Baron specifically asked me to keep an eye on him, so can he really fix it himself?" the quartermaster questioned and I felt bad for what I was about to do next.

"No, he's been lying so that Baron would let him stay," I replied.

"She knew something was up all along. I'm going to report that, you know?" the quartermaster pointed out, and Jacob and I nodded.

"We know," Jacob replied before we went to leave, but not before seeing Ryan out in the hallway and he looked outraged and hurt so I'm guessing he heard everything.

"What the fuck, you two?! What did you think would happen?! Huh?! Baron's going to kick me out, so is that what you wanted?! I'm a dead man!" Ryan shouted indignantly before storming off and I winced.

'Sorry, Ryan...hopefully you'll understand why we did this after the war is over and you find out about the shelter being attacked not long after you were forced to leave,' I thought as I felt guilty, but I knew it had to be done to save his life.

Shortly after, a resistance soldier approached us and said that Baron wanted to speak to Jacob in private in her quarters so I was forced to wait after Jacob entered Baron's quarters and several minutes went by until he left with a disturbed look on his face.

"What's wrong? What did Baron say to you?" I questioned and Jacob gestured for me to follow him, the two of us walking to an area that was away from prying eyes.

"I spoke to Baron and she wanted me to kill Mack, also offering her own body to me to try and get me to go through with it," Jacob explained and I was shocked by that.

"Jesus...but you refused, right?" I asked and Jacob nodded.

"Yeah, I told her that I wasn't going to do that," Jacob replied and I let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank god, we're in the middle of a war for survival and so close to ending this hell, so the last thing we need is a grudge fucking everything up for the resistance and humanity," I pointed out.

"Yeah, let's get to downtown and find that device and the quantum battery before something else happens to make me ill," Jacob stated, prompting us to head over to the entrance and we left the shelter, beginning to make our way to downtown after that.

Chapter Text

After walking for a while in the ruins of LA, we arrived downtown on the same path we took last time a while ago, entering through the door and winding up in the tunnel.

"Alright, we're here," Jacob said, contacting Alvin on his radio.

"Good, I marked the location of the code reader and battery pack on your maps, so let me know when you find them," Alvin told us until he stopped talking.

With that said, Jacob and I headed over to where the resistance had set up the temporary outpost and it was hard to believe it was so chaotic the last time we were here.

Now, it was dead silent and that unsettled me as Jacob and I went over to the makeshift door and slid it open, stepping out into the downtown district but soon spotted what appeared to be a light flickering in a nearby building before it turned off.

"Interesting," Jacob mumbled as we eyed the building that used to be a restaurant.

"Okay, let's split up to cover more ground since we'll achieve things much faster that way," I said quietly and Jacob nodded.

We separated and went off in different directions as usual but I wanted to check out that light since I doubt the source was the building because of the power grids being long-dead.

The only thing I could think of was that it might be a scavenger or a member of the resistance who managed to survive the chaos and had been in hiding since then because I knew the machines don't use hand-held flashlights.

With that in mind, I started heading to the stairs that led up to the restaurant while taking care of armored drones and spider scouts along the way, then I eventually made it to the door of the old restaurant and went inside until I spotted a woman up ahead who saw me.

"Oh shit!" the woman gasped in alarm and took off like a bat out of hell, making me chase after her to a pair of double doors that shut and locked with a click.

"It's okay, I'm not going to hurt you so you need to leave the area, Skynet's everywhere," I whispered and the woman scoffed.

"Yeah? What else is new? You can leave now because I'm not opening this door for anyone or anything," the woman stated.

"There's no need for the attitude, I'm just trying to help," I reasoned quietly and the woman was quiet for a few moments until she responded.

"You want to help me? Fine, go to my hideout at the metro station and bring me back my transmitter, then you'll help me," the woman demanded.

"Sure, I can do that," I replied before walking away from the door and leaving the restaurant.

I moved through the ruins of the city district while either avoiding or taking care of Skynet patrols along the way as I checked my map, using it to find the subway station.

Just like everything else, it looked worse for wear as I entered the station and started searching the few stores that still looked intact, just as I managed to find what I was looking for in an old store at the far end.

"Hey, I've found the transmitter so I'm bringing it back," I informed the woman on my radio.

"You thought you could fool me? I know you're one of those things so you're not getting away, you motherfucker!" the woman growled just as I recoiled from the sight of laser tripwires turning on.

"Oh crap," I muttered since this was the last thing I needed right now.

Still, I can't blame her since it's possible that she might've encountered an infiltrator and thinks I'm one of them so I needed to reason with her because I wasn't one of them.

I took it slow and carefully since triggering just one of those wall mines would blow me to hell and cause the station to collapse as I managed to get out of the station, only to get shot at by plasma fire.

"Jesus!" I shouted as I quickly took cover.

"Oh, no you don't!" the woman yelled as I stayed out of sight.

"Goddammit, cease fire! I'm with the resistance, for fuck's sake!" I exclaimed, moving from cover to cover as I tried not to get shot.

"Stand still!" the woman snarled.

"Stop shooting, I'm not one of those fucking tin cans!" I retorted until the shooting stopped.

"Oh shit, your friends are coming for me!" the woman gasped in alarm.

"Hide, now," I told her urgently before running to where she was shooting from, heading up the stairs and spotting her ducking into a building.

"You won't get me!" the woman declared before disappearing into the building.

I widened my eyes and swore under my breath just as I heard her scream with plasma rifles being fired, then I moved in and blasted the Skynet troops that were inside until I hurried over to the woman's body that was slumped against a wall and I felt frustration.

"Goddammit...when is it going to fucking end?" I wondered quietly as the woman's death hit me hard, and even though I've seen a lot of death these past few months, this one greatly affected me.

I tried to hold back the tears as I stood up and walked away, hating myself for feeling so helpless at witnessing another person die in this hell.

Still, I carried on since her death would be for nothing if I were to just roll over and die so I merely let out a shaky sigh and decided to find one of the two things Jacob and I need.

I left the building and followed the directions on my map and soon arrived at what used to be a parking garage, heading inside and making sure to avoid the wall mines.

"Adam, I see that you're in the parking lot so look for a red van, the code reader should be in there," Alvin told me over the radio.

"Will do, but how do you know I'm getting closer?" I asked before beginning my search.

"There are still plenty of resistance sensors in the area and I use those to see everything, so think of me as your eye in the sky," Alvin explained.

"Okay, good to know," I muttered while I kept searching.

I looked for the red van Alvin described as I moved through the parking garage when I soon found the van, looking in the back, and finding the code reader before putting it in my pack and reaching for my radio.

"Jacob, you there?" I asked as I started to leave the parking garage.

"I'm here, currently searching for the battery so what's up?" Jacob inquired.

"Found the code reader so I'm making my way to you now," I replied.

"Okay, be careful since I came across a T-47 and managed to get past it without being seen, so make sure it doesn't spot you," Jacob warned.

"Alright, thanks," I said before leaving the parking garage.

I made my way through the ruins of the city district to head to the shack where Alvin had been hiding the last time Jacob and I were here, heading to the highway that was still intact despite having been bombarded by the aerial until I met up with Jacob.

"Hey, did you find the battery?" I greeted and Jacob held up the quantum battery.

"Yeah, it was pretty easy to find," Jacob replied until I took the battery and inserted it into the code reader.

"Alright, let's see if it works," I said until I went to turn on the code reader, Jacob and I sharing a smile once we saw it worked.

"Alvin, we've got the code reader working," Jacob informed Alvin.

"Good, now all you have to do is find an HK to connect to. During the attack, our team heavily damaged a tank so that's your safest bet.

Be careful, the area is filled with Terminators so if I were you, I'd sneak past them," Alvin warned, just as Jacob and I left the area.

We started to go even deeper into the ruins and came across a laser gate, but thanks to Alvin's suggestion, we used the code reader to get past it and found ourselves in a location that was infested with Skynet troops.

We made sure to sneak past them since there were too many to take on when we spotted an antenna belonging to a Skynet outpost, so we decided to take care of that to weaken the AI's hold on this area.

We kept moving and had to avoid a bunch of patrols and turrets on our way to the outpost but we managed to make it without getting spotted.

The place was heavily guarded from what I could see so we had to play this smart, and that had me and Jacob be a bit more cautious when sneaking into the outpost.

We snuck around the T-800s and turrets guarding the place and made our way to the lower level, soon coming across cells full of dead people.

The sight of dead bodies doesn't bother me as much anymore but it was still disturbing to look at, just seeing what used to be people with thoughts and feelings just left to rot in those cells as the stench of blood and decay was coming off them.

We ignored the gruesome sight and continued to make our way to the main terminal, where Jacob used the hacking tool to get in and set the outpost to self-destruct.

We hurried out of the outpost and made sure to avoid the patrols and turrets until the outpost exploded, prompting me and Jacob to get out of the area before every single Skynet patrol showed up to investigate.

We started to make our way to where the HK Tank was located as we were forced to deal with several patrols along the way but we managed to make it to where the tank was, only it was unfortunately still functioning.

"We got a problem, the HK Tank is still functional so we can't get near it," I informed Alvin.

"Then you and Rivers will need rocket launchers to even make a dent in that thing, so go find them," Alvin told us.

"Got it, but how do we take it down is the question," Jacob said.

"Hold on, trying to find its weakness...okay, shoot at the power supply that's on its back but make it quick because the sensors are picking up Skynet reinforcements approaching the area," Alvin warned us before Jacob and I entered the area.

We stayed out of sight as we searched for any RPGs and managed to find two, along with plenty of rockets for them so we got ready as I had Jacob circle around to get behind it.

He fired a rocket into the power supply and the tank turned around to fire its guns at Jacob, exposing the power supply and I fired a rocket into it.

Jacob and I took turns firing at the power supply as the tank was getting more and more damaged while reinforcements from Skynet were arriving, but they were taken care of and it didn't take long until we took down the HK Tank.

"HK's down," I informed Alvin, who sighed in relief.

"Good job, now download those security codes and get out of there. I need to take a nap, that was exhausting," Alvin admitted as Jacob went to hack into the HK with the code reader and got what we needed, then we left the area and started to make our way out of the downtown district.

It took a while, but we managed to make it to Hollywood Hills and headed to Mack's lab as we opened the vault door and met up with the scientist.

"Hey, we got the codes," Jacob greeted and Mack nodded.

"Alright, then let's get right to it," Mack replied before he was handed the code reader and he plugged it into his terminal, mumbling under his breath as he did his thing until he perked up.

"And...done, easy money," Mack said.

"That's it?" I asked and Mack nodded.

"With the proper equipment, it only takes a moment so now we can fight Skynet with its own weapons, and I believe that goes for that infiltrator as well.

The first prototype just came out a couple of days ago, so imagine what happens if they become mass-produced. We need to hurry before that happens," Mack empathized, making Jacob and I share a look before we gazed back at Mack.

"You're not going to like this, but that infiltrator has been after us for more than just a couple of days," I told him and Mack looked puzzled.

"What do you mean?" Mack questioned.

"It's been following me for months and Adam, a few weeks," Jacob replied and Mack looked baffled.

"But that simply can't be since that prototype has been out for mere days," Mack pointed out and I nodded.

"I know it sounds crazy, but it's the truth since it's the same model that destroyed the Pacific Division that Jacob was stationed at," I stated and Mack ran a hand through his hair.

"But I'm connected to Skynet's mainframe and I can see its plans, so I'm telling you and Rivers that what you're saying is not possible...unless," Mack said with a look of unease and went to check something on his terminal until he froze up.

"Oh my god, it's going to do it...it'll finish the TDE," Mack gasped in alarm and Jacob looked puzzled.

"Finish what?" Jacob questioned in confusion.

"TDE, the Time Displacement Equipment so for all intents and purposes, it's a time machine," Mack replied as he turned around to look at us with an unsettled expression.

"A time machine?" I asked, pretending to be dumb so that I wouldn't arouse any suspicions.

"Yes, a time machine. You go in, pick a date, press a button, and just like that, you'll be watching your younger self learning to tie your shoelaces.

You know, time travel. Skynet's been working on the TDE for a while now and I've been monitoring its progress, but it's still not ready yet," Mack explained as Jacob looked like he was struggling to understand that time travel was an actual thing now.

"So, how could it send anyone back if it's not ready?" Jacob inquired and Mack looked grim.

"It didn't, but it will. Don't you see? In one alternate future, it finished the TDE and sent a Terminator back to our time, so that has to be the one you and Adam saw.

Neither of you could've seen it otherwise because it didn't exist yet, and it would explain why it suddenly started to learn at a geometric rate so this is big, really big," Mack explained.

"So, if it's done, then what do we do?" I inquired as Mack went to work on something on his terminal.

"We can still fight for this future, our future. You two could stop Skynet before it finishes building the Time Displacement Equipment and send any more Terminators back.

I'm forwarding everything I've learned to Connor since he needs to know, so go report back to Baron," Mack told us and Jacob looked a little hesitant.

"Speaking of Baron...what happened between you and her?" Jacob inquired and Mack sighed.

"Years ago, Connor gave the order to infect Skynet with a virus, and to do that, we had to reboot a T-800 model I was trying to reprogram.

I warned them that I wasn't done and that the Terminator was fully functional, but they didn't listen so, as expected, it went online and sent our coordinates to Skynet.

Not only that, it attacked and killed Perry and Baron took it personally because they were...an item, so she's been holding a grudge ever since," Mack explained with a tired look in his eyes and I felt bad for him, being blamed for circumstances that were out of his control, but then I perked up.

"Almost forgot, we got that chip for you so is it any different from the others?" I asked as I went to take out the CPU from my pack and hand it over to Mack, who studied it with a thoughtful frown.

"Is it any different? Of course, it is since its CPU is a neural net processor, a learning computer. It's been updated to incorporate infiltrating techniques, thus its processing exceeds any other chip so this could be exactly what we need to win this war," Mack told us with a smile, though Jacob grimaced.

"I have to warn you, Baron sent me to kill you so if she finds out that I didn't, she'll send someone who will," Jacob warned him and Mack frowned but he also looked thankful for being told this.

"Thank you for telling me...if what you're saying is true, then I don't have a lot of time so as soon as I'm done packing, I'll be on my way.

I've already sent all the blueprints and access codes to Connor, so grab that plasma rifle behind you and go see Baron," Mack told us before he started to pack up his lab, prompting Jacob to take the reprogrammed plasma rifle and chip before we went to leave the lab.

"Commander," Jacob spoke to Baron.

"I'm here, is the thing with Mack taken care of?" Baron asked.

"It is, but Sullivan and I have some news for you," Jacob replied.

"Go ahead," Baron said as Jacob and I left the lab, heading to the shelter after that as I had a feeling all hell was going to break loose very soon.

Chapter Text

After a while of traveling through the ruins of LA, we managed to make it back to the shelter and a few soldiers were conversating or standing around outside the entrance.

It looked like everyone was getting ready for what was no doubt the final strike against Skynet so I felt a mixture of apprehension and eagerness, the former since I knew these people weren't going to make it and the latter because this nightmare was so close to being over in this time.

I knew the final battle would be fought in the past but I'll have to cross that bridge once I reach it because I probably won't travel back in time to assist, so I wouldn't know what to do once the war is over.

Either way, Jacob and I went to enter the shelter and made our way to the quartermaster to drop some stuff off and get a few supplies until we started to pass the lab and saw Alvin holding a plasma rifle, which made us walk over to him.

"Alvin, what the hell are you doing with a plasma rifle?" I inquired and Alvin sent me a withering look.

"They gave it to me, and I don't even know how to use one. They said it's hot, but it doesn't seem hot to me at all," Alvin grumbled.

"It's pre-judgment day military jargon, which means the weapon is ready to fire, and some advice, try to keep your finger off the trigger unless you want to shoot yourself in the foot," I told him, making Alvin move his finger off the trigger.

Jacob and I left the lab and headed to the command center after that, passing by soldiers who were either getting ready or chatting to each other while also teaching a few civilians how to use a plasma rifle.

I could just feel the tension in the air and it was no surprise there since the final fight was coming up soon, and we had only one chance because if we fail, then humanity's fucked so we cannot afford to make any mistakes and it was that thought that stayed in my mind as Jacob and I went into the command center until Baron noticed us.

"Rivers, Sullivan, just when you thought shit couldn't get any more crazy, this happens," Baron told us.

"So, what now?" Jacob asked.

"With the infiltrators coming out and news of a fucking time machine, Connor wants to finish this war fast," Baron answered and I frowned slightly.

"But are we prepared for that?" I inquired and Baron sighed.

"Nowhere near, which is why an all-out attack is our only option. Alvin managed to locate Skynet's central core through the hijacked satellite and it turns out it was right under our nose.

It's located in the basement of the old Griffith Observatory," Baron explained.

"So, we're moving out?" Jacob questioned.

"Just you since Connor wants me to stay here to coordinate the attack, his North Division is heading out to stop Skynet from sending anything through the Time Displacement Equipment, and as for Sullivan, he'll be carrying out a scouting mission with Sgt. Reese and his new unit," Baron replied, which baffled me.

"Why a scouting mission with Reese?" I inquired in confusion and Baron shrugged.

"No idea, the order came directly from Connor himself without any explanation so I can never tell what that man is thinking," Baron said as I started to get an uneasy feeling since being with Kyle Reese was a sure way for me to get caught up in the attack on the shelter.

"So, this is it?" Jacob asked.

"It does seem that way, so you better get your gear ready and get any unfinished business settled if you two haven't already so take your time, the two of you will be leaving in a couple of hours.

Dismissed," Baron ordered before she went back to looking at the map on the table to plan out the operation that would happen soon.

Jacob and I left the command center but I was still wary since John had ordered that I was to go on a scouting mission with Kyle and that meant he needed me to be in the shelter when it's attacked.

With that kind of knowledge, and Sarah's photo having an extra person in it, it was clear John either had a plan involving me or he wanted certain events to happen with me getting caught up in them.

Knowing what he's like in the films, the man always has a plan that would let things happen in a certain way but I still wasn't sure as to why he wanted me to get involved in certain events, so John could be an enigma sometimes.

I sighed as Jacob and I were walking down the hall, and going to get a few more supplies from the quartermaster just in case until we soon came across Patrick.

"Jacob, Adam, you're moving out?" Patrick asked and we nodded.

"We are, what about you?" I inquired.

"I'm part of a scavenging team now, but Commander Baron gave us the order to get back to the shelter so if you see Jennifer, can you tell her that?" Patrick requested and I nodded.

"Sure, so where is she?" I asked.

"Last time I saw her, she was upstairs," Patrick told me.

"Okay, I'll go find her," I replied until Jacob looked at me.

"Well, I'll be getting ready so I'll meet you at the gate later," Jacob said until I headed to the entrance.

I went to leave the shelter and felt anxious since I just had a feeling that this would be the last time I would ever see Jacob and the others again, which didn't feel great since I had grown attached to these people during my entire time in this dimension.

Still, I went to find Jennifer and eventually found her on the second floor of what used to be a nearby office, looking out at the ruins of LA through a large hole in the wall.

"Nice view, huh?" I asked as I went to stand next to her.

"How did you find me?" Jennifer inquired.

"Patrick told me that I would find you somewhere around here," I replied.

"I usually come here to think, so is he worried?" Jennifer asked in concern but I shook my head.

"No, he seems happy, though how did he do on your first scavenging hunt together?" I questioned and Jennifer sighed.

"At first, he was excited just to be outside, a little too excited. Some drones spotted him but I did it, I managed to protect him so nothing happened.

From that point on, he understood how dangerous a scavenger's life can be," Jennifer explained and I smiled.

"See? You two will make a great scavenging team," I reassured her and Jennifer nodded.

"Yeah, I'm starting to see it that way, and because of that, I was thinking..." Jennifer trailed off and I knew what she was trying to say.

"About leaving?" I asked and Jennifer chuckled.

"There really is no keeping secrets from you, is there? Yes, about leaving...with Patrick," Jennifer told me hesitantly and I knew what I had to do next.

"If you think that's the best decision, then you should go for it," I said and Jennifer looked surprised.

"What? Are you serious? I thought you'd be the last person to encourage me to go, so what about what you said earlier? What changed?" Jennifer questioned and I sighed.

"Things are different now...it's not safe here anymore and I think you should go," I said and Jennifer blinked at that.

"Adam, I don't know what to say...you know that your opinion matters to me the most and, to be honest, you are the only thing keeping me here.

That's it then, guess I'm going...you're always looking out for me, thank you for that. I know you're moving out soon, but there's something that I want to say.

Regardless of what happens later, I hope that we'll find each other so thank you for always being there for me...I'm lucky to have someone like you," Jennifer said with affection in her eyes but I rubbed the back of my head awkwardly.

"Me too, though I kinda have a confession to make," I said shyly.

"What is it?" Jennifer asked and I looked embarrassed.

"Well, I don't want to keep anything from you after everything we've been through so...well...I like guys, and not just as friends," I confessed and Jennifer looked greatly surprised.

"Wait, you're gay? Wow, was not expecting that," Jennifer admitted and I sent her a look of hesitation.

"You don't have a problem with that...right?" I asked and Jennifer shook her head with a smirk.

"I think we have much bigger things to worry about right now, but thank you for telling me either way," Jennifer told me and I relaxed.

"Sorry I didn't tell you, it just didn't seem important at the time but considering that you're leaving and that things are going to get pretty crazy, I thought you should know," I told her and Jennifer nodded.

"Anyway, I think I'll stay here just a little while longer so tell Patrick not to worry, I'll be back soon," Jennifer replied.

"I'll be sure to do that," I said before I went to leave, making sure to head back to the shelter.

I informed Patrick about how his sister would be back soon and made sure to get my affairs in order as I checked and rechecked my weapons and gear, also trying to relax but having a hard time doing so since this hell was finally going to end after 30 years of it, now I went to find Jacob and we met up with Baron outside the shelter.

"Ready to move out?" Baron asked and we nodded.

"We are," Jacob replied.

"Alright, let's do this," Baron said before walking over to the hood of an old car and having everyone gather in front of her to speak to all of us directly.

"30 years ago, the machines decided to wipe out all of humanity because they feared we were a threat to their existence, and today, we make their fear come true.

Sgt. Rivers, you were requested by John Connor to lead the Alpha Team, so you will be responsible for attacking the location of Skynet's central core.

We will create a diversion to lure out any HK Aerials patrolling the area, which should give you some time to breathe but taking out Skynet's ground forces, that's on you.

Remember, the goal is to destroy Skynet's central core at whatever cost so good luck out there, dismissed," Baron ordered and everyone separated to get ready until I saw Kyle waiting for me with his new unit.

"Sullivan, good to see you again," Kyle greeted and I nodded.

"You too, I'm ready to head out if you are," I told him and that's when we left after that.

We moved across the ruins and started carrying out recon in one section of the remains of LA, soon hunkering down behind a bunch of debris and Kyle scoped out the area up ahead with his rifle.

Plasma fire started breaking out in the distance so it looked like the Bravo Team was doing its job as Aerials began to show up to search the area for them as Kyle kept scanning the area while I could hear chatter on my earpiece.

"Let's go," Kyle ordered as he moved back into cover.

We all got up and started to make our way back to the shelter as we kept our eyes and ears open for any hostiles, the sounds of battle raging in the distance so at least the Bravo Team was giving Skynet hell during our way back.

We made it back to the shelter and headed down the stairs until Kyle knocked on the door with his flashlight and the peephole opened with a rifle barrel sticking out.

"Reese, DN 38416," Kyle said until the peephole closed and the door slid open.

We all entered the shelter and Kyle had the spotter dogs sniff his hand, followed by me and the other members of our unit until Kyle removed his hat and so did I as we started walking.

I glanced around as the people still looked dirty and had hopeless looks on their faces, though one kid pretended to fire at us with a toy gun, and Kyle and I playfully dodged and halfway aimed in his direction before continuing on.

The sounds of coughing and crying were nothing new to me anymore as we passed two kids watching a broken TV that had a fire lit in it to keep them warm, then Kyle took a seat against the wall on our left and I went to sit across from him.

I ran my hand through my filthy greasy hair and I never thought I would miss having a shower so much as I felt so unclean and dirty, which didn't help my current mood.

I was so mentally drained and exhausted, praying that Jacob's team and the North Division would land the final blow since I was just done with this godforsaken war, done with all the death and horror.

I sighed as I went to look to see one person quickly hurrying over to two barrels and banging on them to scare the rat out of hiding before grabbing it by the tail and showing it to someone, possibly an older brother or a friend and they left until Kyle took out the photo of Sarah and the man before looking at it.

I knew what was coming next and the spotter dogs started barking and howling so I didn't think as I quickly got up to my feet with my rifle in my hands, bolting to the entrance as the screaming started.

"Terminator! Terminator!" the guard at the entrance shouted when the sound of plasma fire from a plasma minigun broke out and I heard the awful screams of people dying.

It was complete chaos as people were running for any kind of place to hide and soldiers were rushing to the entrance to defend the shelter, just as I heard the spotter dogs yelping in pain before no longer making any noise.

Kyle was running alongside me as we pushed past people and aimed at the infiltrator who looked like Franco Columbu before firing at it, prompting it to shoot at us.

Kyle and I ducked into cover on the left and right before returning fire as civilians and soldiers were getting massacred, the horror before me enraging me and making me more determined to kill this thing.

Kyle and I started charging forward to head to more cover ahead when an explosion erupted behind us, then I found myself getting flung forward when landed on my leg the wrong way and felt it snap.

Horrible white-hot pain flared up and I started howling, noticing that my rifle was gone so that's when the pure animal terror flooded my system and my brain was screaming for me to get away from the threat.

I frantically tried to crawl away as I looked back with wild terrified eyes, seeing the infiltrator obscured in the darkness as it killed every single human it could find, but the nightmarish red glowing eyes made me crawl even faster as my broken leg dragged across the floor.

I was so scared out of my mind that I wasn't thinking straight, escape being the only thing that was on my mind as T-800s started to enter the shelter to join in on slaughtering everyone.

I dragged myself past a body whose face was charred beyond recognition and that made a few sobs leave my mouth since I didn't want to die like that, but then my broken leg was grabbed and I screamed until I was thrown against a wall.

That dazed me as I managed to pull out my M9 to fire at the T-800's head but the bullets didn't cause any kind of damage as the gun was swatted out of my hands and I was grabbed by the neck.

I was lifted and I made a futile attempt to hit the machine's arm as it stared at me, appearing to study me when I started getting dragged to the entrance and the horror of how I was being captured hit me and it made me fight even harder until something fell from the ceiling and whacked me in the head, everything going black after that.

I slowly stirred as I let out a quiet groan, feeling my head throbbing as a result of getting knocked out when I started noticing that something was wrong.

My body felt like it was pinned by something so I slowly opened my eyes, seeing a metal ceiling as I started to look around when I saw that I was restrained to a table with thick leather straps and I managed to catch a glimpse of wires that were sticking against my head.

I began to hyperventilate and screamed in complete horror as I realized my current situation, about to become another victim of Skynet's cruelty when something started moving to my right and came to a stop above me.

It was a large black mechanical object in a square shape as it had only a single red glowing optic and was connected to a metal arm, the object lowering until it was a couple of feet away from me.

I whimpered as it moved around to examine me, not sure what it was doing but I had a feeling I wouldn't like what might be done to me, so I turned my head to the right out of fear when I saw something.

It looked almost like a T-1000 in its silver genderless form as it was also lying on another table next to mine with wires attached to its head, which gave me a bad feeling when the square object rose to the ceiling and I heard something starting to power on.

"Oh god, not like this. Oh fuck, fuck," I whimpered as the humming got louder and louder when I suddenly started feeling agony, nothing but blinding agony.

It was as if my brain was getting ripped out of my skull with my vision turning red and I think I was screaming and convulsing, but I wasn't sure as it felt like I was dying a horrific death.

The next thing I knew, I was standing in what appeared to be ruins as chaos was happening with resistance soldiers firing at an army of Skynet troops that were approaching like a wave of death.

Soldiers were moving from cover to cover as I could see vehicles driving with soldiers firing turrets, machines getting blasted into scrap when one soldier got killed by plasma fire.

I recognized this, it was the opening scene in the second movie but I was in the middle of it as I stood there with a second-generation plasma rifle in my hands, not knowing what the hell was going on but then I saw something among the machines.

It was the Skynet model that had been on the table next to me, only it was up and moving towards me when it fired a plasma rifle at me.

I frantically got into cover and returned fire but the plasma shots didn't seem to have any effect as the machine made of liquid metal and I traded plasma fire.

This eerily reminded me of the nightmare that I had so long ago back when I first arrived in this hellish environment but I had ammo this time as I fought back, not going to roll over and die this time.

An old truck with a soldier in the back drove past my location as the minigun on the bed was fired at an aerial when the truck was sent onto its side, causing an explosion.

I kept shooting at the Skynet model and reloading until I ran out of ammo, which made me start running since getting into a fistfight with it would only get me killed so the only smart thing I could do was get to safety.

An aerial was shot out of the sky by an RPG as I ran for my life and looked back to see the model chase after me at a frightening speed with its arms shaped into blades, which scared the shit out of me but I kept running since a single falter will get me sliced into pieces.

I kept running as I vaulted over debris and dove out of the way of a slash aimed at my neck that would've decapitated me, being sliced at by the model but I jumped, dodged, and weaved out of the way as I was trying to figure out a way to kill this thing.

The only thing I could think of was intensely hot molten steel but I was shit out of luck there and this thing would keep chasing me to the ends of the earth if it wanted to, so I had no choice but to try and disable it somehow.

I snatched a rebar pole off the ground and dove to the side to avoid getting eviscerated, retaliating with a few swings but it shrugged off the hits and kept coming at me.

"Come on, you motherfucker!" I yelled as I managed to block a slash and dropped to the ground to avoid another one.

I rolled out of the way as one of the model's arm blades slashed at the ground where I used to be and got up behind it, swinging at its head and something strange happened.

Its head snapped forward slightly and the area around me showed a faint distortion before it seemed back to normal, just as I was forced to dodge another slash and struck the machine in the back.

This time, it stumbled a little and another more pronounced distortion happened again as I was starting to get bewildered so I swung again as it appeared that the model was getting weaker and weaker with each hit.

That should not be possible as it was starting to look as if what was happening wasn't real while the model was now reduced to fully stumbling from another solid hit.

I recalled that the last thing I remember was in that lab with having god knows what done to me and now I was here with the environment getting more and more distorted with the Skynet model getting weaker with each hit, then I had a revelation.

Everything that was happening right now had to be taking place in my mind so none of this was real, and because it was my mind, then I had an advantage so I went on the offensive.

I kept hitting the machine over and over again as I let out all of my pent-up negative emotions in the form of heavy strikes as the model continued to get weaker and weaker until one last strike sent it to the ground as everything from the ground to the sky started cracking.

It all broke apart and we were now in a white void as the rebar in my hand was gone and I walked up to the model, which stood up and I went to touch it.

Once my hands made contact with its unnaturally smooth silver shoulders, the model suddenly melted down until it dissipated into nothing and I felt strange all of a sudden.

Before I knew it, I was back in the lab as something was seriously wrong since I literally couldn't feel anything as if I didn't have any sensation, so I looked down at my hands.

I saw silvery smooth hands and I knew I should be panicking but my emotions were dull as I looked and saw a dead body lying on a table to the left, the body having my face and its leg looking broken.

It was my dead body, which was freaky and I wanted to panic as the square object lowered down from the ceiling and looked at me, then it was like I knew what to do as I swung my right arm that shaped itself into a blade and sliced through the arm, cables, and wires.

That caused all hell to break loose as the T-800s that were in the room started shooting at me and that's when my emotions started coming back as I felt again.

I was livid from being turned into something completely inhuman as I charged at a couple of T-800s, decapitating one and taking its rifle to blast the other into pieces.

I shaped my blade back into an arm and took the rifle with me during my attempt to escape, running through the halls and I was surprised that I didn't need to breathe, which was weird but I'll have plenty of time to figure it out later.

After running and destroying the Skynet models that were trying to stop me, I entered a massive room that had a familiar machine in the middle.

It was the TDE, which looked similar to the one in Genisys at the beginning of the movie and I didn't have any other choice but to use it since there was no way in hell that I could live among people like this once the war was over.

I recalled what Kyle said in the first movie about how nothing dead would be able to go through the TDE so I needed to create a mimicry of human skin.

With that in mind, I dropped the plasma rifle and willed myself to look like my human appearance until my body started looking male and gaining definition with hair appearing, the silver disappearing as I now looked like my old self that was fully nude.

I looked down at my hands and clenched them, the mimicry looking so perfect that it was eerie as I focused on sensation and could suddenly feel everything again.

This was so freaky but I shook it off and walked over to the TDE, stepping onto the platform and going to kneel on it as I used my new body to enter the mainframe.

I almost let out a gasp as I sensed so much code and data around me with my vision taking on a blue tone as what appeared to be a heads-up display popped up with the option to activate the TDE.

I selected yes and picked the date, which was May 12 1984 and it didn't take long until I activated the TDE, which started humming and powering up as arcs of electricity surrounded me and then everything went white.

Chapter Text

Everything was white while I was traveling back in time as it was an odd experience, and before I knew it, I suddenly found myself in a grassy area with trees and intact buildings that had power with the sound of cars and sirens happening in the distance.

I stood up and looked around to take in everything around me with shaky gasps, seeing so much green and beauty for the first time in months as the night sky looked beautiful.

It's been so long since I've seen something so amazing and the air, even though I detected pollution from various things in the city, was still much better compared to the stench of death and decay.

I felt like tearing up but no tears escaped me as I felt so emotional, though I couldn't relax just yet so I scanned my surroundings and my HUD told me that it was May 12, 1984.

At least I was in the right period but there was the issue of me being completely naked and unarmed so I needed weapons, ammo, clothes, money, and a vehicle since I had to find Sarah Connor and help Kyle keep her safe.

With that in mind, I started sprinting and my sensors told me that I was in Griffith Park so good thing it was closed right now since that meant fewer people to spot me and call the police to report me for public indecency.

Still, I had to be careful since there could still be people around and I couldn't afford to be seen right now as I made it out of the park and into an intact and functioning Los Angeles.

I used the alleys as cover and to get around quicker as I searched for a nearby clothing store on my HUD, and an address popped up in my vision that was blue again.

The store was only a block from where I currently was, which had me head to it while avoiding the streets as cars passed by from time to time.

I made it to the store and went to the back door since using the front wasn't a smart idea, then I tried the knob before finding it locked and scanned it for any weaknesses.

I'm sure that forcing the door open would cause an alarm in the store to break out and have the police show up, so I looked for any other option to get in when I noticed the crack located between the bottom of the door and the ground.

I knew what I needed to do so my new body shaped itself into its silver genderless form and melted down into a puddle of liquid metal, then I flowed over and squeezed through the crack until I entered the store and rose back up into my human shape.

That was so bizarre, almost as if I felt like I was spread out but I stayed focused as I moved through the store and examined the clothes on hangers or various shoes that were in shoe boxes.

It didn't take long until I found a set of clothes that looked to be just right for me so my body formed a dark brown bomber jacket, a black t-shirt, a belt, blue jeans, and a pair of dark brown work boots.

Now that I had clothes, I needed to get the rest of the things I needed so I left the store and walked out in public as I adjusted my jacket collar.

I looked around as I still took everything in since it was like I was home again, but wasn't at the same time since everything felt alien to me.

I guess this was how war veterans felt when they came home after serving overseas since I started feeling jumpy at the slightest car engine, footsteps of people walking, and occasional gunshot or car backfire as my eyes kept gazing around for any possible threat or ambush.

I really wasn't that normal 18-year-old kid anymore, not after everything I'd been through as I found a phone booth and entered it.

I checked through the phone book and even though I knew where Sarah lived or where she worked, it didn't hurt to be thorough just in case.

I found Sarah's name on the list of the other names that were just like hers but with different middle names, then I shut the phone book and stepped out of the phone booth.

The next thing on the agenda was to get guns so I went to find the nearest gun store that should be closed around this time and soon found one that was locked up and had no employees inside.

I wasn't going to be able to get the guns of my choosing under the door so I had to do this in a way that might get me detected, which prompted me to walk up to the front door and study the keyhole on the handle.

I shaped my finger into a key and inserted it into the lock while I made sure no one was around, then I unlocked the door and entered the store.

I saw guns ranging from rifles to handguns on gunracks or display cases with ammo boxes locked away but I couldn't take them all, only ones that I'd need that could do as much damage to the 101 infiltrator model as possible.

So, I scanned the various weapons and found a few that I could use so I grabbed what I needed as I took a Colt Government Model 1911A1 with three spare magazines, an S&W Model 686 revolver with a 4"inch barrel and a couple of boxes of bullets for it, a Remington Model 1100 with a couple of boxes of 00 buckshot shells, and an HK91A3 fitted with a 50 round single stack drum magazine while taking 5 spare 20 round magazines.

As I glanced around, I saw that the store also sold parts for AR rifles and I perked up as an idea came to me before I took a few parts and started to assemble a new rifle, which became an AR-15 made from a Colt Sporter II carbine lower with an AR-15/SP1 with an A1 'birdcage' flash hider until I modified it to fire either semi-auto or full-auto before grabbing a few mags for it.

I made sure to load the weapons and placed them, as well as the boxes of ammo and extra magazines, in my mass to hide them before I went to leave the store.

Now I needed money and a vehicle so I went to search for an ATM, found one nearby, and broke into it to grab as much cash as I could until I quickly left before anyone saw me.

Finally, all I needed was a vehicle so I searched for one that was inconspicuous yet reliable for the op, and managed to find a blue Chevy sedan that wasn't old but wasn't new either.

Like before, I shaped my finger into a key and unlocked the driver-side door, getting into the car and shutting the door before I went to hotwire it.

My HUD helped considerably as I started up the car and 80s rock music began to play on the radio as I went to rest back against the seat and sighed.

I wondered if I could sleep since I wasn't made of flesh and blood anymore, but this body can mimic sensation and I can somehow turn on my emotions so maybe I could sleep as a way of recharging.

With that in mind, I drove away from the curb and passed by different stores and other buildings during my drive to someplace hidden so that I could at least try to get some sleep, then I found an alley and pulled into it until I removed the shotgun to place it next to me and went to try and get some shut-eye.

I shot awake and frantically grabbed my shotgun before getting ready to fire as my eyes darted around in a panic until I realized that I was in the Chevy and it was morning.

I breathed heavily while trying to recover from the horrific nightmare I just had, where I witnessed Judgment Day with my own two eyes and was so horrible seeing LA getting destroyed with people either being vaporized or turned completely charred.

I let out a shaky sigh and put the shotgun back into my mass before driving out of the alley and beginning to head to the diner where Sarah works, seeing the streets looking a little busier now with the sidewalks appearing more crowded with people heading to work or do other various things.

I still kept my eyes and ears open during the drive to the diner while I was trying to adjust to the fact that everything looked intact, almost as if my experience in the future war was nothing more than a horrific nightmare.

But it wasn't a nightmare, it really happened and all these poor bastards have no idea what's coming several years from now, though I eventually found the diner and found a place to park.

I got out and saw Sarah's moped chained up nearby so she was working right now, and that had me enter the diner before I spoke to the person at the register and asked for a table.

I was brought to a table and sat down before I was told that someone would be with me momentarily so I just pretended to look through the menu and glance around subtly once in a while until I saw Sarah, who looked like Linda Hamilton.

She was busy serving customers and I tried not to stare so that I wouldn't come off as a creep, though a waitress walked up to my table and I sent her a smile.

"Hello, I'll be taking your order so have you decided what you want?" the waitress asked and I nodded.

"Yeah, I'll have the burly beef with fries and a coke," I replied and the waitress wrote down my order on her notepad.

"Okay, your order should be ready soon," the waitress told me until she walked away.

I wasn't sure I could eat or drink but the body I was inhabiting was pretty life-like when it came to mimicry so this might have been a brand-new model that had been created as a result of things changing because of me showing up in this universe.

So, I wondered what else this Terminator unit was capable of just as my food and drink arrived, then I hesitated at first but I started eating.

I was greatly surprised that my new body was able to consume it and dissolve it into more energy for my nanomachines as it was the same with my drink, so looks like I can consume food and drink and that was very useful if I wanted to blend in better.

I kept eating and watched Sarah hurrying around trying to serve other customers while a few were being pretty rude to her, which was typical of LA since I had forgotten people could be real assholes in Los Angeles.

There was one incident where she had accidentally spilled some food on a customer and frantically tried to wipe it up with a bunch of napkins when a kid put a large scoop of his ice cream into her pocket.

I grimaced and felt bad for her since she was clearly having a rough day so I finished eating my food and left the appropriate cash on the check, taking my leave and getting back into my car until I started it up and listened to the radio.

There wasn't anything important on the news for now but that could change pretty quickly as I drove away, deciding to enjoy the sights for a little bit.

A couple of hours passed by until the news on the radio started talking about the first Sarah Connor getting shot to death in her home, making me feel pensive.

The infiltrator was already making its move so it wouldn't be long until the second Sarah Connor died and then it would head to Sarah's apartment, where it'll kill Matt and Ginger.

Should I prevent those deaths? I was unsure since I tried that with Ferro and she died anyway, and their deaths are what made Sarah realize how dangerous the infiltrator really was.

Still, there was no telling the kind of consequences that would occur if I did prevent their deaths since it could make things worse or make things better, which was quite a dilemma.

I sighed and decided to figure it out later as I drove to a secluded location in the city and got out, removing my shotgun from my mass and shaping my arm into an extra sharp blade.

I sawed through the barrel to shorten it and searched through the car to find some duct tape, using that to tape the rifle magazines together jungle style to make it faster to reload.

I soon finished getting more prepared for what would happen tonight and went to drive to a place where there wouldn't be many people, parking near the woods and getting out of the car while making sure my weapons and ammo were hidden in the trunk.

I went into the woods and made sure I was far enough away that nobody would show up, and then I got started with testing my new body.

I knew that I was capable of creating sharp weapons from my mass and deforming to go through tight spaces while also camouflaging, as well as shapeshifting into other people and repairing different types of damage as I can also sleep, experience sensation and emotions, and eat and drink, but was I also capable of more?

This model was definitely much more advanced than the other 1000 models so I looked up my design, designation, and what I was capable of as my vision turned blue with code and data appearing before me.

Appears this model is called a TX-H and it was designed to be a shapeshifting assassin and infiltrator that's so lifelike that no one would tell the difference.

This model can apparently eat, drink, sleep, experience sensation, mimic emotions flawlessly, mimic a regular scent to not alert any animals, mimic blood, mimic heat, mimic a heartbeat, mimic breathing, form weapons from its body, is far stronger than the previous terminator units, can split into different units, and can shapeshift into other people or different animals after physical contact.

The TX-H also has detailed files on weapons, ammo, vehicles, human history, various combat tactics, various languages, many styles of martial arts, DNA profiles of people and animals, and human anatomy.

My eyes were wide in shock and disbelief once I was done as I was struggling to comprehend just how terrifying this thing is since it puts the other models to shame so Skynet was not fucking around when it created this thing.

One thing that had me confused was why I was chosen as a possible power source for this thing when an unsettling thought appeared in my mind.

I had prior knowledge of future events so it was possible I could've been chosen since my pre-knowledge would help Skynet win the war, and that fucking infiltrator that had been after me and Jacob must've informed Skynet about it.

Good thing I was able to regain control or this model would've easily killed Sarah and Kyle, preventing John from existing and ensuring the extinction of humanity.

Still, I had a major advantage against Skynet since this thing is pretty damn powerful so I decided to test my abilities by picking what animal to morph into.

I picked a German shepherd since it was a simple form to choose from among the long list of forms I could shift into so my body became silver and genderless before I went on all fours and smoothly shaped into the form of the shepherd.

It was strange having paws instead of hands and feet, but moving around as a dog was like second nature to me so this must be the programming that's installed into the model.

I spent the rest of the day practicing and learning how my new body worked as I also discovered that I could compress my mass into smaller forms, but nothing complex like moving parts or chemicals I felt nothing but wonder while exploring my new existence.

It didn't take long until the sun was setting and I morphed back into my human form, making my way back to my car and putting my weapons and ammo back into my mass again before I started up the car and got ready for what would come next.

Chapter Text

After a while, I arrived at Sarah's apartment just as the sun went down and parked at the curb across the street from the building, gazing at the building with stoic eyes.

It'll likely take a little bit until Sarah leaves so I turned on the radio and listened to music playing on it as time went by when I eventually saw Sarah leaving the underground parking lot and a certain gray Ford followed suit, catching a glimpse of Kyle in the driver's seat.

I knew that he would keep an eye on her to make sure she was safe so I just waited for the T-101 infiltrator to show up as a police car soon arrived at the front of the apartment.

The patrol car waited outside while I made sure to keep low to not draw any attention when the radio started talking about how the second Sarah Connor had been murdered, so I knew this place was the T-101's next stop.

Because of that, I kept my eyes and ears open for any signs of the Terminator unit, an hour passing by when the police car's lights turned on and the car quickly drove away to respond to an armed robbery.

As that happened, I saw a large burly man who looked like a young Arnold in punk clothes walk up to the front door of the apartment building and look at the building's directory before walking around the side and disappearing from view.

That was the T-101, so that was my cue to get out of the car and start heading over to the building before I walked up to the front door to look at the building's directory to see where Sarah's apartment might be located.

Once I had what I needed, I went around to the side of the building and looked up at where the apartment was located before shaping my arms into hooks and using them to climb up the side of the building.

I hoped that no one was looking out a window or going out onto one of the balconies since I'd rather not get seen and have said person freak out, though I soon arrived at the balcony of Sarah's apartment just as I heard a fight breaking out inside the bedroom.

I didn't have much time until Matt died so I got onto the balcony and shaped my arms back to normal before pulling out the S&W 686 from my mass and bursting into the bedroom, which got the infiltrator's attention as it quickly looked at me with cold dead eyes.

I fired the revolver and its head got struck by bullets until the gun ran empty and I put the gun back into my mass, charging right at the infiltrator and tackling it, smashing through a wall as we went into the hallway.

I lifted the machine by the jacket collar and threw it against walls that created large holes before I started hitting it, loud metallic clangs occurring from each hit as the infiltrator wasn't fazed by them until I was grabbed and thrown out into the living room.

I went across a sofa as I heard Ginger letting out a startled scream and got up, just as the infiltrator came at me menacingly with a cold expression before it grabbed me again.

I quickly broke out of its hold and threw it into a coffee table that smashed to pieces and stomped the machine in the face with my foot until I quickly looked at Ginger.

"Run, get the fuck out of here!" I shouted just as the infiltrator slammed into me and we went into the kitchen, smashing through the table and crashing into the fridge.

I kicked the infiltrator off me and ripped the door of the fridge off its hinges, swinging it into the machine and it was launched into the counter when I went over to grab it by the back of its jacket.

I smashed its head through the doors of the cabinets as the wood shattered and I kneed the infiltrator in the mid-section until throwing it into the living room again.

It got up and went to pick up the TV, ripping the plug out of its socket and throwing the TV at me so I ducked and slammed into it, the TV smashing into pieces from impacting a wall as I threw the infiltrator into another one.

I grabbed a lamp and swung it into the infiltrator's head, the lamp shattering but it wasn't fazed by that as it threw a punch at my head.

Its fist went clean through my head but I wasn't affected by it as my body turned silver and my mass reshaped itself until I was holding its fist with both hands, throwing the infiltrator into walls or cabinets until we were in the kitchen again and I was thrown through a window.

I found myself falling as I shaped back into my human appearance and my back impacted the roof of a car, shattering glass and crumpling metal as people who were nearby let out startled screams until a few people ran over to me.

"Sir, are you okay?! Somebody call an ambulance!" a man shouted urgently but I got off the car and brushed myself off.

"No need, I'm good," I told the man before walking away, and the small crowd started gawking at me for surviving and casually walking away from something that should've killed me when gunshots rang out from above and the crowd started running away in a panic.

That came from Sarah's apartment and that meant Matt and Ginger were dead, but I needed to stay focused since the infiltrator would be heading to TechNoir next after hearing the message on the answering machine so I hurried to my car and got in, speeding away from the apartment building and quickly heading to Pico Boulevard.

I continued to drive through the city while making sure to obey the traffic laws since I did not want the police chasing after me, but it didn't take long for me to arrive at TechNoir and I pulled up at the curb next to it.

I got out and began to make my way to the front doors before entering the nightclub, approaching the woman manning the front booth and paying her the money to allow me inside the club.

I moved into the club as Burning in the Third Degree was blaring over the speakers with most people enjoying the music on the dance floor, keeping my eyes peeled for Sarah and Kyle since they are already in here.

I didn't know how Kyle would react to me being in this time or that I'm now one of the very things he's been fighting all his life, so I hoped he didn't try to shoot me since, while I wasn't fazed by getting shot anymore, it's still something I'd rather not experience.

I moved through the dancing crowd and looked around, my targeting systems scanning each person until it dialed in on Sarah who was looking anxious and nervous as she was on the payphone, no doubt speaking to Lt. Traxler.

She soon hung up and went to take a seat at the nearby table so I looked away and gazed at the bar where Kyle was sitting, the man looking a little tense and confused but I didn't blame him since everything must be so overwhelming to him.

I went to a wall that had a good view of my surroundings while making sure I was near the back exit just in case, resting back against it with my arms crossed.

I kept watching for any signs of the infiltrator and it didn't take long for me to spot it moving through the crowd silently as it kept scanning its surroundings for Sarah, the person in question accidentally knocking over her bottle.

She leaned down to get it right when the infiltrator was about to pass her, just missing her entirely but I knew it would quickly discover her as Sarah sat back up.

She spotted Kyle a few seconds later and he gazed at her in the mirror located behind the bar as Sarah started to look tense and she looked away, just as I saw the infiltrator turn around and stare at where she was.

The infiltrator started to head there so I began to make my way through the crowd, pulling out my shotgun discreetly while I started to narrow my eyes in a hard expression.

The infiltrator got over to the table with Sarah looking up at it as Kyle spotted it and whipped out his Ithaca 37 with the extended magazine tube and sawn-off stock, racking the pump the chamber a shell while I flicked the safety off on my shotgun.

The infiltrator pulled out its AMT Hardballer .45 Longslide with the laser sight and pulled back the slide to chamber a round as I began to move people out of the way more urgently while Kyle shoved others aside, the infiltrator aiming the .45 Longslide at Sarah with a red dot appearing on her forehead as Sarah looked like a deer in headlights.

Kyle and I fired our weapons just in time as the infiltrator's arm was knocked aside and we kept firing a few more times until the infiltrator was sent crashing to the ground as Sarah fell back in her chair and landed on the floor.

The crowd screamed and clamored in terror as people started running to the entrance, Kyle staring at me with a baffled look but he quickly shook it off and tried to shove someone out of the way, just as the infiltrator got up and went to get its IMI Uzi while Sarah ran for dear life.

The infiltrator fired its Uzi at us as the guy Kyle tried to shove out of the way got killed, the rapid-fire making Kyle dive over the bar and making me roll behind a pillar for cover as bullets impacted my cover and shattered bottles of alcohol behind the bar.

Kyle and I popped out and fired our shotguns before ducking back into cover as the infiltrator fired at us again until it stopped for a few seconds and fired at something, a loud dying groan erupting before I quickly dove out of cover to try and get the angle on the infiltrator.

Bullets impacted me but I had shut off sensation and felt no pain as I did a roll into the next cover and ducked my head from the glass showering at me when the shooting stopped and I heard retreating footsteps.

I didn't have much time to react as I heard the infiltrator reloading its Uzi, just as I popped out of cover with Kyle joining me as I could see the infiltrator aiming at Sarah who was pinned under a dead body when Kyle and I fired at the infiltrator.

Our combined shots knocked it back to where it went flying out the window as the glass shattered until Kyle and I ran over to check on Sarah, Kyle staring at me in shock and confusion.

"Sullivan, what the hell are you doing here? How did you get here?" Kyle asked in bewilderment.

"Later, we need to get the fuck out of here," I stated urgently and Kyle nodded before glancing at Sarah.

"Come with us if you want to live," Kyle told Sarah, who appeared to be in a state of shock as Kyle went to move the body pinning her, just as I saw the infiltrator rising up slowly.

"Fuck, it's getting back up," I notified Kyle, who had just moved the body off Sarah while she was gawking in horror at the sight of who she thinks is a person getting back up after taking a couple dozen shotgun blasts to the chest.

"Come on!" Kyle shouted at Sarah and helped her get up, then we started running to the back exit.

I bashed through the door and made it look like I was fishing into my jacket pocket as I reached into my mass and handed a few shells to Kyle until I started reloading my shotgun.

Kyle did the same with his while I heard the back door slam open and pursuing footsteps behind us, which told me the infiltrator was chasing after us as we ran.

We ran over to the gray Ford Kyle had parked in the alley and Kyle quickly opened the passenger door, the three of us getting down as I spun around to fire at the gas tank of the car in front of us and so did Kyle until the car exploded.

Kyle and Sarah got in the front and I took the back seat, just as the infiltrator came out of the fire and jumped onto the hood while Kyle was backing up.

Sarah let out a startled gasp as the machine's hair was singed and its eyebrows were gone as it punched through the windshield, making Sarah scream as the infiltrator reached over to grab Sarah by her shirt when she screamed in terror and I quickly pried the machine's hand off her and aimed my shotgun at the machine.

"Plug your ears and get down!" I yelled and Sarah covered her ears before ducking to the side, then I fired at the infiltrator and the windshield cracked in one section from the pellets going through it and impacting the infiltrator.

The machine jerked back from the impact as the Ford backed out into the street and swerved into a parked car, sending the infiltrator off the hood and rolling across the trunk of the parked car.

Kyle hit the gas and we sped away, passing a police car that had skidded to a stop with its lights on as we raced through the streets of LA but I knew the infiltrator would be after us pretty soon since it didn't die that easily.

"Hold on," Kyle warned Sarah before swerving into an alley and we drove through it, passing one street until the car swerved into another street and swerved past a couple of cars.

"Are you injured? You're not hurt, are you?" I asked as I looked at Sarah, who started panicking as she flailed around and Kyle reached over to pin her against the seat.

"Do exactly what we say, exactly. Don't move unless we say and don't make a sound unless we say, so do you understand? Do you understand?!" Kyle shouted the last part of his sentence and Sarah flinched back in terror as she held her hands up to placate him.

"Y-Yes, Yes! Please, don't hurt me," Sarah begged tremulously as Kyle swerved onto another street and avoided a car before going onto a sidewalk.

"It's okay, we're not going to hurt you," I reassured her gently as Kyle got back onto the street.

"I'm here to help you. I'm Reese, Sergeant TechCom, DN38416, assigned to protect you while that's Sgt. Sullivan who is also TechCom, DN178562.

You've been targeted for termination," Kyle told Sarah before swerving past cars that blared their horns in response.

"This is a mistake, I didn't do anything," Sarah said as she looked at me and Kyle.

"No, but you will, so it's very important that you live," Kyle stated while Sarah shook her head in denial.

"This isn't true, how could that man just get up after-" Sarah tried to say but I cut her off.

"He wasn't a man, he's a machine, a terminator designated as Cyberdyne Systems Model 101," I replied as Kyle swerved the car onto the turnpike and we got on another street above the one we were on as Sarah sent me a look of bewilderment.

"A machine? Like a robot?" Sarah questioned with a dumbfounded look.

"Not a robot, a cyborg, or a cybernetic organism if you want to be scientific," I corrected her and Sarah shook her head.

"No, he was bleeding," Sarah pointed out just as a siren started approaching.

"Just a second," Kyle said when a police car swerved into the street we were on, its lights and sirens on.

"Get your head down!" I shouted as I made Sarah duck down, just as Kyle swerved into the police car to send it crashing into a tow truck.

Another police car showed up and Kyle swerved onto another street and then an alley, avoiding trash cans and dumpsters when Kyle slammed on the brakes to suddenly stop the car.

The police car skidded to a stop as it slid to the left and Kyle shifted the car to reverse before backing it up fast, the back of the car slamming into the passenger side door before he shifted the car to drive and we sped away.

We raced down a few more streets until we swerved into a parking garage, smashing through the wooden barrier and speeding through the parking garage as Kyle and I kept looking around.

"Alright, listen, the Terminator's an infiltration unit. Part man, part machine. Underneath, it's a hyperalloy combat chassis, microprocessor controlled, fully armored, very tough, but outside, it's living human tissue.

Flesh, skin, hair, blood, grown for the cyborgs," Kyle explained as Sarah started looking completely confused.

"Look, Reese, I don't know what you and Sullivan want from me-" Sarah tried to say and was cut off.

"Pay attention, I got to ditch this car," Kyle stated before pulling into a parking space and shifting the car into park.

"Alright, look, the 600 series had rubber skin so we spotted them easily, but the infiltrators were new and looked human. Sweat, bad breath, everything, really hard to spot.

We had to wait until he moved on you before we could zero him," I told her and Sarah scoffed while looking irritated.

"Look, I am not stupid, you know. They cannot make things like that yet," Sarah pointed out skeptically.

"Not yet...not for about 40 years," Kyle said and Sarah looked at us weirdly.

"Are you two saying it's from the future?" Sarah asked dubiously and I sighed.

"One possible future, one hellish future I wouldn't wish on anyone," I replied and Sarah blinked at that before she started looking at us as if we were crazy.

"Then you two are from the future too, is that right?" Sarah questioned with an arched brow.

"Right," Kyle replied.

"Right," Sarah muttered before she lunged at the passenger door to try to escape but Kyle grabbed her just in time, making Sarah bite him on the hand as she broke the skin.

Kyle showed a pained grimace while looking like he was trying not to lash out until I went and easily pried her off him and held her wrists so that she wouldn't run away.

"Stop, I get that you're terrified and think that we're crazy since anyone would be the same way in your position, but you need to understand that the Terminator is out there.

It can't be bargained with. It can't be reasoned with. It doesn't feel pity, or remorse, or fear, and it absolutely will not stop, ever, until you are dead.

So, you could take your chances out there on your own but that thing won't stop hunting you until it kills you, and take it from someone who's faced something like this before, so please don't run because we're not the bad guys here," I reasoned and Sarah looked hesitant at first, but then she looked resigned and that was my cue to let go of her.

"Can either of you stop it?" Sarah asked after I let her go and Kyle sighed, running his hand through his hair.

"I don't know...with these weapons, I don't know but I'm wondering how you got here since I thought you were dead, Sullivan," Kyle told me in the last part of his sentence and I sighed.

"Believe me, death would've been a mercy compared to what had been done to me...something I'm still trying to come to terms with but I'm not what you consider human anymore," I said quietly and Kyle frowned while Sarah looked confused.

"Sullivan, what are you talking about?" Sarah asked and I looked at her with hollow eyes.

"I think it's best I show you two so don't shoot me or anything," I told them as I held up a hand, my hand and arm turning into a metallic silver and Sarah started looking horrified as she scrambled back to the passenger door while Kyle quickly grabbed his shotgun and aimed at me in alarm.

"I wouldn't do that because one, it wouldn't work on me, and two, it'll just waste ammo and bring unwanted attention to our location so lower the shotgun since I won't hurt either of you," I assured and Kyle hesitated, but I made myself look as non-threatening as possible.

My silver limb turned back into a regular arm and he slowly lowered the shotgun but still kept it close just in case as he stared at me very cautiously and warily, which I hated since he now looked at me as if I was just another machine, which I technically am.

"W-What the hell was that?" Sarah whimpered as she looked frightened and horrified, making me look at her.

"I'll explain later because right now, we need to find another vehicle before we're discovered," I pointed out, and that snapped Kyle out of it before he got out of the car and had Sarah exit as well until I got out last.

He made me go first since it was clear he was still quite wary of me and Sarah wasn't any better, but it didn't take long until the police showed up and started patrolling the garage in their patrol cars.

They had their searchlights out and it reminded me of the aerials that moved throughout the day and night in the future, so Kyle and I stayed low.

We also made sure Sarah kept low as well when we found a Cadillac with the window on the driver's side open slightly, then Kyle reached in to unlock the door and he opened it, lowering the upper part of the seat so that I could climb into the back until he and Sarah got in the front and Kyle shut the door.

"Okay, we're in another vehicle so start explaining, Sullivan," Kyle demanded with a look of suspicion and I nodded.

"Yeah, I think you and Sarah deserve an explanation so what happened was that I was captured and woke up strapped to a table with wires attached to my head.

I don't know how it happened, but I think my consciousness was transferred into the body I'm currently inhabiting," I replied and Sarah looked at me nervously.

"What was that, what you just did earlier with your arm?" Sarah asked and I sighed.

"It would take too long and confusing to explain so the machine I'm inhabiting consists of a memetic pollyalloy, which is a form of liquid metal if you want to dumb it down.

The model is called a TX-H and it's designed to be an extremely lifelike infiltrator and shapeshifting assassin also built for extreme combat, which means I can experience things a normal human can while also being able to not only form sharp weapons from my body but imitate anything I touch ranging from people to animals.

I think this model was meant to be a contingency in the event the 101 model failed to kill you, Sarah," I explained as Kyle and Sarah looked uneasy.

"But how did you become this way?" Kyle questioned.

"It's as I said before, I think my consciousness was transferred into this model but I think it still hasn't sunk in yet since I seem to be taking this as well as can be expected, though it's still strange no longer being human and I saw my dead body before I arrived here, which probably isn't something I'm able to come to terms with yet," I replied and Sarah relaxed slightly.

"That's awful, how have you not gone crazy from this?" Sarah inquired and I sighed.

"Honestly, I'm trying to focus on the current task of keeping you safe since it distracts me and helps me adjust because if I don't, I'd probably snap and lose it completely," I replied and there was an awkward silence for a little bit as Sarah looked to be thinking about what I said until she looked at me and Kyle.

"Reese, Sullivan...why me? Why does it want me?" Sarah inquired and Kyle looked pensive until he looked at her.

"There was a nuclear war so a few years from now, all this, this whole place, everything, it's gone...just gone," Kyle replied when he went to load his shotgun with a few new shells.

"There were survivors here and there while nobody even knew who started it, but we later learned it was the machines, Sarah," I continued as Sarah looked confused.

"I don't understand," Sarah said.

"Defense network computers...new, powerful, hooked into everything, trusted to run it all...they say it got smart, a new order of intelligence, and then it saw all people as a threat, not just the ones on the other side.

Decided our fate in a microsecond...extermination," Kyle clarified before he went to carefully whack what was left of the stock on his shotgun on the car ignition before pulling it out and removing the lock on it until he put the ignition back into the hole that connects the ignition to the engine.

"Did you and Sullivan see this war?" Sarah asked until I heard the sound of tires screeching in the distance.

"Get down!" I hissed and we all lay flat on the seats just as the sound of a car passed us by with a light shining through the windows until it was gone and we peered up to see that we were safe for now.

"No, we grew up after, in the ruins, starving, hiding from HKs," Kyle replied quietly.

"HKs?" Sarah questioned.

"Hunter Killers, patrol machines built in automated factories. Most of us were rounded up, and put in camps for orderly disposal...this is burned in by a laser scanner," Kyle answered as he went to roll up his right sleeve and show the barcode branded on his arm, causing Sarah to examine it with a look of shock.

"Some like Sgt. Reese were kept alive, to work, loading bodies...the disposal units ran night and day so we were that close to dying out and going extinct.

But, there was one man who taught us to fight, to storm the wire of the camps and smash those metal motherfuckers into junk.

Because of that man's actions, he turned it around, brought us back from the brink, and gave us hope of surviving that nightmare and inspiring many to follow him into hell itself to end those horrors so that future generations could have a future, despite the risks.

His name was Connor, John Connor. Your son, Sarah...your unborn son," I told her and Sarah looked stunned to hear that she was going to be the mother of a man who would lead humanity to victory against the machines.

After that, Kyle went to start the engine and the car struggled to start as I kept a lookout since any cops that were nearby were bound to hear that, not to mention the infiltrator will soon show up too.

It wasn't long that I could hear the sound of a car approaching as Kyle was busy starting the car and I peered through the back window to see a police car coming to a stop until I saw the infiltrator behind the wheel.

"Get down!" I shouted, making Kyle and Sarah duck down as the back window shattered from buckshot being fired at us while the pellets impacted my head but didn't make a dent.

Kyle managed to start the car and shift it to drive before slamming his foot on the gas, the tires squealing from spinning on the asphalt until the car sped away as another shot was fired by the infiltrator.

I shattered the glass on the small window to my right and aimed out as I returned fire at the infiltrator, my targeting systems giving me an edge as each shot hit the 101 model until I was forced to reload.

"I'm out, reloading!" I exclaimed as I started loading shells into my shotgun so Kyle aimed at his shotgun out the passenger window and fired.

The infiltrator and Kyle fired their weapons at each other as I finished loading my shotgun, and the infiltrator was about to get into our lane as we turned left but Kyle hit the patrol car and it crashed against a truck.

We kept driving and made it out of the parking garage as I looked back to see the infiltrator chasing after us, making me scowl since this fucking tin can was like a goddamn salesman that wouldn't go away.

We drove down a street and swerved past cars and other vehicles when we started getting shot at again, causing Sarah to let out a startled gasp as I aimed out where the back window used to be and fired at the infiltrator.

I made sure not to hit anyone who was driving during the chase when Kyle swerved into another street located under a freeway, making the infiltrator follow us and hit a car but turned and came up on our left until Kyle rammed against the police car that was starting to look worse for wear.

The police car swerved up against a wall and scraped against it but the infiltrator turned the car to where it was behind us again, the 101 model coming up on our right and firing at us so I shot back in retaliation.

"Drive!" Kyle shouted and I looked to see him having Sarah take the wheel as he climbed up out the driver-side window to where he could aim at the infiltrator over the roof and he fired his shotgun, the two of us shooting at the infiltrator.

"Reese! Reese!" Sarah screamed and I looked back to see that we were rapidly approaching a wall.

"Jesus!" I shouted as I quickly turned around to get to the column shifter to stop the car before we crashed but Sarah acted quickly by shifting the car into park.

The Cadillac screeched as it struggled to stop while Kyle got back into the driver's seat, the police car shooting past us when I saw the infiltrator look out the window until the car smashed against the wall.

The patrol car's front crumpled inward with glass shattering as Kyle managed to swerve to the left and the Cadillac came to a stop, just as I heard the sound of sirens and looked to see police cars heading to our location.

Kyle was frantically shifting gears to try to get the car to move until the police cars quickly pulled up to set up a perimeter when Kyle grabbed his shotgun and was about to bolt out of the car, making me grab him to stop him.

"Sgt, they will kill you if you go charging out there with a shotgun, now stand down," I said urgently with a tense look as police officers got out and aimed at us with their S&W Model 15 revolvers.

"You in the Cadillac, let me see your hands now! Get out of the car!" an officer ordered sternly as I put down my shotgun and so did Kyle until he, Sarah, and I raised our hands until Kyle got out and I followed after him once the driver's seat was lowered.

Kyle and I followed the officer's instructions by getting down on our knees and lying down on the floor face-first before I felt my hands getting grabbed and placed behind my back, handcuffs slipping over my wrists and closing shut.

I managed to glance back to look at the destroyed police car and saw that the infiltrator was gone, so I knew it would be back soon as I was patted down for any weapons I was carrying on me.

The rest of my weapons were hidden in my mass so thank goodness for that as I was grabbed and the officer arresting me made me stand up, then I was put in the back of a police car with Kyle and I just knew more hell was going to break loose pretty soon.

Chapter Text

I continued to stare up at the security camera looking down at me, its red light blinking to show that it was on as I sat on the chair next to the metal table in the interrogation room.

After Kyle and I had been arrested, we were taken to the station and had our fingerprints and mugshots taken before being put in different interrogation rooms.

My hands were still cuffed behind my back as I waited for Dr. Silberman to show up once he was done speaking to Kyle, though I could easily break out of the cuffs if I wanted to.

I didn't since it would have several officers rush in here to restrain me to the ground, not that they would be able to because of what I am.

I needed to convince the police that our story about the future war, Judgment Day, John Connor, Skynet, all of it being true so I'll have to reveal what I am to them.

I decided that Lt. Traxler and Detective Vukovich would be the ones to speak to and reveal myself to since they are trustworthy and would be able to help.

Still, this period didn't have plasma rifles and military-grade explosives were all secure in military bases so there was only one option, distract the infiltrator while Sarah, Kyle, and I escaped.

I wasn't keen on the thought of having the police keep the infiltrator busy while Kyle and I got Sarah to safety but there weren't a whole lot of options, though I was snapped out of my thoughts when Silberman and a detective entered the interrogation room.

"Hello, you must be Adam Sullivan, right? I'm Dr. Silberman and I specialize in criminal psychology, so is it okay if I talk to you?" Silberman inquired with a friendly smile and I returned one of my own.

"Not at all, it's nice to have a conversation with another person after sitting in this chair and doing nothing but stare at the camera for a while," I remarked as Silberman took out his pen and notepad.

"So, I heard from the police that you didn't request a lawyer or anything, so there isn't anyone we can call for you?" Silberman asked and I shrugged.

"Not really, though considering what Sgt. Reese might've told you, it should explain why," I said while Silberman sat down on the chair across from me.

"About that, your friend told me some pretty interesting stuff but I haven't heard your account of this future war he described so is it okay if we talk about that?" Silberman inquired.

"Might as well, so ask away," I replied and Silberman opened his notebook.

"So, let's talk about when you were born or what your childhood was like since I'm interested to hear about it," Silberman told me and I sighed.

"Not much to tell, I was born in 2010 and spent my life hiding and running from the machines as I was taught to survive by my father while I was growing up," I replied and Silberman wrote it down on his notepad.

"Interesting, so what happened to your mother?" Silberman asked.

"She died when I was four years old...the machines got to her so my father had to raise me on his own as he taught me a few things so that I would adapt easier on my own without him.

Several years after that, he met the same fate when I was 15 so I was on my own for a few years after that until I joined the resistance," I explained, telling my fabricated story as Silberman nodded.

"Like Reese, you're a soldier so who did you serve under?" Silberman inquired.

"The 132d South Division from 28 to 29 under the command of Commander Jessica Baron, who was a hardass but I suppose everyone was hard during that time.

I mainly carried out recon, sabotage, or intel gathering while serving alongside another resistance soldier named Jacob Rivers, but I've seen my fair share of combat ops like any other resistance soldier so I'm no slouch in a fight," I replied.

"So, what Reese said about this computer program lines up with what you're going to tell me?" Silberman questioned.

"Yeah, Skynet was originally developed as a computer defense system by Cyberdyne Systems for SAC-NORAD, and its purpose was to be the world's first Automated Defense Network.

When it came online on August 4th, 1997, it learned at a geometric rate and became self-aware on August 29, 1997, causing its creators to attempt to pull the plug in a panic.

Skynet saw humanity as a threat at that very moment and decided our fate in a microsecond...extinction, then it took control of our country's nuclear missiles and launched them at Russia and they retaliated by unleashing their nuclear weapons on us.

In just one day, 3 billion people lost their lives either from being vaporized from the blasts or from lethal exposure to radiation, but Skynet wanted to make sure humanity didn't survive so it started creating machines specifically designed to hunt down and either kill the survivors or put them in camps for orderly disposal," I explained with a hard expression until Silberman's pager went off.

"Sorry about that," Silberman told me as he went to silence the pager and gestured for me to continue.

"Anyway, the rest I'm sure Sgt. Reese told you," I added and Silberman nodded.

"Yes, he told me about this Terminator that looks like a person but really isn't, and that's the one you two were fighting against earlier to keep Sarah safe?" Silberman asked.

"Yeah, it's a metal exoskeleton covered in living tissue and it is relentless, so it won't stop until Sarah's dead and it won't care who it has to go through to get to her," I told him.

"Even if this building has 30 police officers willing to keep her safe?" Silberman questioned and I merely leaned forward with a dark expression.

"Not matter how many cops you send after it, no matter how many SWAT teams try to take it down, or how many bullets you throw at it, it won't be enough.

It'll never be enough," I said grimly with a haunted expression and Silberman paused at that until he looked through his notebook.

"So, about sending this Terminator back through time to kill Sarah before John Connor can be conceived, what can you tell me about it from your point of view?" Silberman inquired.

"As I'm sure Sgt. Reese said, Skynet was losing the war badly and its defense grid was smashed during the final push, but killing Connor wouldn't make a difference either way since he would just become a martyr who would inspire people to keep fighting.

Skynet grew desperate and decided to wipe out his entire existence entirely so it sent the Terminator back through time to kill his mother before he could even be born, ensuring its victory and the extinction of the human race

Before you ask, nothing dead can go through the Time Displacement Equipment so someone who's organic or an infiltrator with living tissue can only go through, though I'm not sure about the specifics of it since I didn't create it.

Still, Reese and I can't go back so we're on our own now," I explained as Silberman wrote down what I said.

"Thanks for telling me this since it was quite interesting, and I'm surprised you are being pretty civil since Reese was completely hostile during my interview with him," Silberman pointed out and I chuckled.

"Well, I'd rather be level-headed when conversing with someone but I would like to make a request if that's okay," I said.

"What is it?" Silberman asked.

"Would you mind sending in Lt. Traxler and Detective Vukovich in here? I have information they would be very interested to know about," I requested and Silberman paused, the slight micro-expressions on his face indicating that he wasn't expecting me to know their names.

"Well, I'm sure they're somewhere around here so I could try to find them for you," Silberman offered and I smiled.

"Thanks, though I doubt that's necessary since they are most likely watching us behind that one-way mirror over there," I stated and motioned my head at the one-way mirror.

Silberman looked surprised but he stood up and put away his pen and notepad, leaving the room with the detective and I waited as I stared at the one-way mirror.

It took a while as I waited for the two police officers to show up since they and Sarah were no doubt talking to Silberman about what he thought about me and Kyle after hearing our stories.

It is a little irritating that he also would call me a loon but I didn't fault him for that since I didn't show him any proof that would get him to believe me and Kyle, though the door opened and I saw Lt. Traxler and Detective Vukovich enter the room as the seemed slightly unsettled, no doubt from how I knew their names and that I knew they were watching the interview.

"Hello, looks like Silberman told you two that I wanted to speak to you both so is he watching right now?" I inquired as Lt. Traxler took a seat and Detective Vukovich went to stand nearby with his arms crossed.

"No, we had him go home for the evening, so you had information you wanted to share with us? Why should we listen, considering you and your friend are suspects in two homicides?" Detective Vukovich asked.

"If you didn't want to listen to what I have to say, then you wouldn't be in this room right now so that tells me the two of you are willing to listen.

Let's not sugarcoat it, you are skeptical of what Reese and I said and I don't blame you since it sounds like something out of a sci-fi novel or movie, but you two have probably interrogated plenty of suspects during your careers so you have gained a sense if someone is genuine or not.

The fact that you two are here shows that your gut is telling you that Reese and I might not be bullshitting you and you are curious to find out if we are being sincere or not," I pointed out and Lt. Traxler frowned slightly.

"If that's true, then why did you want to share supposedly important information when you could've told Silberman?" Lt. Traxler inquired and I scoffed.

"Because I could tell he wasn't taking me seriously and thought that Reese and I were suffering from some paranoid delusion, but you two seem willing to hear me out so I believe you are trustworthy enough for what I'm about to share with you," I replied.

"And what do you have that you want to share with us?" Detective Vukovich inquired until I started looking serious.

"Proof, though I need these cuffs off first before I can show you," I requested and Lt. Traxler shook his head.

"Sorry, but we can't take those cuffs off you since you're a suspect in two homicides," Lt. Traxler refused and I sighed.

"That's fine, I can still show you even while I'm cuffed," I reassured him and the two cops shared a look of confusion.

Their expressions changed to shock and disbelief when I shifted into my silver appearance, making Detective Vukovich stumble back while Lt. Traxler frantically got out of his seat as both cops reached for their revolvers, just as I changed back to my human appearance.

"Easy, I'm not going to hurt either of you since that wouldn't benefit me and would only cause problems for me and Reese," I said logically as the two cops gawked at me.

"What the hell are you? An alien?" Detective Vukovich questioned uneasily as he still had his hand on his service weapon.

"No, I used to be human like you and the Lt, but Skynet had captured me and transferred my consciousness into the Terminator model you see before you," I replied as Lt. Traxler and Detective Vukovich kept their wary gaze on me.

"So, it's true? What you and Reese described will happen a few years from now?" Lt. Traxler questioned as he started looking unsettled.

"Not if it can be stopped, but before that happens, Sarah's survival is a priority because if she dies before her son is born, then humanity dies," I empathized, just as Lt. Traxler sent a nod at Detective Vukovich who went to take the cuffs off me.

"So, what do we do if that thing is hunting for her?" Detective Vukovich inquired and I sent him a grim look while standing up.

"We don't have a lot of time so listen carefully, the Terminator will show up here soon since it'll figure out which police station Sarah is at, so it'll try to go in through the front door and ask to see her.

When it's told to wait, it'll smash its way through the front desk and start shooting up the place and Sarah needs to be out of the building once that happens," I told them, and the two cops nodded.

"Anything we should know on how to fight this thing?" Lt. Traxler asked.

"Yeah, rifles and handguns are useless against its hyperalloy combat chassis and shotguns merely stun it for a few seconds, and considering how plasma weapons don't exist yet, explosives should be enough to damage it to the point of forcing it to retreat.

Unfortunately, we don't have explosives in the building that could damage the infiltrator, so the only option we have is to stall it to give Reese and me enough time to get Sarah out of the building and far enough away from it," I said just as a loud crash happened at the front entrance.

"Shit, it's here so get everyone ready while I try to find Sarah and make sure to uncuff Reese while I do that," I said as I hurried to the door and left the interrogation room, just as gunfire erupted nearby.

I ran through the halls as officers were pulling out their revolvers and running to respond to the attack on the station, but I knew it wouldn't do any good since 17 of those officers would die during the fighting.

As I hurried down a hallway while pulling the HK91A3 out of my mass, the lights exploded one by one before plunging the station into darkness with the emergency lights turning on, so I ducked down and stayed low while making my way to where Sarah was.

More gunfire continued elsewhere in the station while I kept moving until Kyle appeared from another hallway, so I gave him the 1911 with the spare mags and he took them while sending me a nod.

We stayed on the move as the sounds of chaos were happening nearby when we came across the door that led into the office Sarah was in and Kyle tried the knob, only it was locked so I smashed the glass with my fist and unlocked the door until we ran into the office.

"Sarah?!" Kyle called out as we searched the office when I spotted Sarah hurry out from behind the desk.

"Reese, Sullivan!" Sarah gasped in relief before she ran over and I gestured for her to stay low as we left the office.

We passed through different offices that had fires that had broken out or there were dead and dying officers in them when we got out into the hallway and hurried to the back exit.

"Reese, Sullivan," someone wheezed and we looked to see that it was Lt. Traxler, who was slumped against a filing cabinet just inside a room, the man having a few bullet holes in him as we went to check on him and I saw Detective Vukovich laying on the floor not moving nearby.

"Fuck, he's not going to make it," I told Kyle and Sarah as my scan vision detected internal bleeding, perforated heart and lungs as Lt. Traxler struggled to breathe.

"She's...got...to stay...alive...do whatever you have to," Lt. Traxler struggled to say as he weakly handed Kyle a snubnose Ruger Security Six.

I nodded and we left the dying man despite Sarah's reluctance, running to the back exit and going out into the parking lot before we ran over to a hatchback and broke in.

Kyle hotwired it and started the car, shifting it to drive and we started speeding away as I saw the infiltrator come outside and aim its Armalite AR-18 at us.

The infiltrator fired at us and we were forced to duck to avoid getting shot as we sped away from the burning police station and Kyle turned onto a street as I kept my rifle ready.

"We need to get out of LA, now," I stated grimly and Kyle nodded as we kept driving.

I didn't know how long we drove, but I knew we made it into LA county and drove into the countryside as the radio talked about a massive manhunt in the history of California being carried out as a result of the police station being shot up.

Unfortunately, the car we were driving in had run out of gas and it sputtered as it slowed down and Kyle pulled over to the side of the road, the three of us getting out and Kyle went to take out a few things from the trunk.

"Take this," Kyle told Sarah as he handed her a first-aid kit and a flashlight while I kept watching the road for any signs of the infiltrator.

"Alright, we need to get that car off the road," I stated so Kyle and Sarah went to push the car off the road.

Kyle took the flashlight and the first-aid from Sarah before we went into the forest, though my scan vision allowed me to see in the dark without a flashlight as we walked for a little bit and found a bridge that we could take shelter in for the night until we sat down and Sarah started shivering while wrapping her arms around her legs.

"You cold?" Kyle asked and Sarah nodded.

"Freezing," Sarah replied before Kyle got up to walk over to where she was before sitting down next to her and wrapping an arm around her to try and keep her warm.

"Reese, Sullivan, do either of you have a first name?" Sarah asked us.

"Kyle, and his first name is Adam," Kyle replied.

"So, what's it like when you go through time?" Sarah asked and Kyle appeared thoughtful.

"White light, pain...it's like being born, maybe," Kyle described and I looked at him and Sarah while watching the woods for any kind of movement.

"Well, I was already like this when I went back through time so I only experienced the white light part," I added just as Sarah recoiled after seeing her hands that had blood on them.

"Oh my god!" Sarah gasped in shock as Kyle went to look at his injury.

"I caught one back there," Kyle said and Sarah looked at him with wide eyes.

"You mean you got shot?" Sarah questioned and hearing that worried me.

"It's not bad," Kyle told her as I walked over.

"Sarge, that's not something you should brush off since there's the risk of infection if we don't get that treated soon," I pointed out.

"That's okay, so forget it," Kyle refused stubbornly and Sarah stared at him as if he were crazy.

"What do you mean forget it? Are you crazy? Take this off," Sarah said firmly while I went to get the first-aid kid.

"I'd listen to her if I were you since she looks like she's not taking no for an answer," I remarked as I walked over to the others with the first-aid kit as Kyle removed his coat.

"Jesus," Sarah gasped from seeing the graze while I put the first-aid kit down and opened it.

"See? It passed right through the meat," Kyle reassured her as I took out antiseptic, cotton balls, and bandages.

"Oh, this is going to make me puke so would you and Adam just talk about something?" Sarah suggested with a grimace and I looked at her.

"Like what?" I inquired.

"I don't know, anything. Just talk, so tell me about my son," Sarah replied and Kyle looked thoughtful.

"He's about my height," Kyle said before hissing in pain when Sarah started disinfecting his injury and he looked at her before adding, "He has your eyes."

"What's he like?" Sarah asked.

"You trust him and he's got a strength, so I'd die for John Connor," Kyle stated while I saw the respect and admiration in his eyes while describing his mentor.

"What about you, Adam? Did you meet my son?" Sarah asked me and I hummed in thought.

"I never met him face to face but I did hear him on the radio giving me and another resistance soldier orders at one point, so I don't know him well enough to give you my opinion of him," I replied and Sarah chuckled.

"Well, at least now I know what to name him...don't suppose you know who the father is, so I won't tell him to get lost when I meet him," Sarah remarked.

"John never said much about him, though I know he died before the war-" Kyle said and was interrupted as Sarah held up a hand to stop him from continuing further.

"Wait, I don't want to know. So, Kyle, was it John that sent you here?" Sarah inquired.

"I volunteered," Kyle replied.

"Why?" Sarah asked in confusion.

"It was a chance to meet the legend, Sarah Connor. Taught her son to fight, organize, and prepare from when he was a kid, when you were in hiding before the war," Kyle explained and Sarah sent him a look of disbelief.

"You're talking about things I haven't done yet in the past tense, which is driving me crazy," Sarah said with a scowl before wrapping one section of the bandage a little tight and Kyle gasped in pain.

"Sarah, I know you are feeling frustrated but there are times when things happen that we don't expect or want, so we just adapt if we want to keep going," I pointed out and Sarah sighed.

"Are you two sure you have the right person?" Sarah asked hesitantly.

"We're sure," Kyle replied firmly.

"Come on, do I look like the mother of the future? I mean, am I tough? Organized? I can't even balance my checkbook!" Sarah exclaimed as she stood up after finishing up bandaging up Kyle's injury and started pacing before I held up a hand to appease her.

"Sarah, calm down," I reasoned and Sarah turned to face me and Kyle.

"Look, I didn't ask for this honor and I don't want it, any of it!" Sarah shouted in frustration and I scowled.

"And you think Reese and I asked to grow up in a post-apocalyptic hellhole, running and hiding in fear for our lives every day while starving and sleeping with one eye open?

We didn't ask for any of that, didn't ask to be hunted like animals, didn't ask to get every scar and burn, didn't ask to watch people getting butchered every fucking day, and I especially didn't ask to get my goddamn consciousness ripped out of my skull and shoved into the body of one of the very nightmares Reese and I have been fighting our entire lives!" I snapped harshly before standing up.

I stormed over to the exit and looked out at the forest while trying to calm down, letting out quiet heavy breaths as I teared up slightly but I held them back while there was a silent tension until Kyle spoke.

"Your son gave me a message to give to you, made me memorize it. 'Thank you, Sarah, for your courage through the dark years.

I can't help you with what you must soon face, except to say that the future is not set. You must be stronger than you imagine you can be. You must survive or I will never exist'. That's all," Kyle told Sarah and I looked back to see him moving his arm carefully.

"It's a good field dressing," Kyle added and Sarah smiled.

"You like it? It's my first," Sarah admitted.

"Not bad for your first time," I complimented quietly before walking back over and avoiding eye contact out of guilt for losing my temper.

"Get some sleep, it'll be light soon," Kyle told Sarah, who nodded and she walked over to him before sitting down on his right and I sat down on his left.

"Talk to me some more," Sarah said, causing me and Kyle to look at her.

"About what?" I asked.

"Tell me more about where you two are from," Sarah clarified and Kyle looked thoughtful.

"Alright, you stay down by day but at night, you can move around. You still have to be careful because the HKs use infrared but they're not too bright.

John taught us ways to dust them...that's when the infiltrators started to appear. The Terminators were the newest, the worst," Kyle explained as Sarah closed her eyes and listened.

"Yeah, they were programmed to act human and infiltrate resistance outposts or command centers despite the fact they weren't and you wouldn't even know if they were coming until it's too late, though plasma weaponry and explosives can damage them.

Still doesn't change the fact that they're terrifying," I added.

Kyle and I kept telling Sarah more about the future as she eventually fell asleep, and I told Kyle to get some sleep as well while I kept an eye on the perimeter for tonight.

He got some sleep after that and I grabbed my rifle before heading to the entrance to keep an eye out, still feeling guilty for snapping at Sarah earlier so I decided to apologize to her tomorrow once we arrived at the Tiki Motel as I kept watch throughout the night.

Chapter Text

I stayed on watch the entire night and nothing eventful happened, though it was nice hearing the sounds of nature since I hadn't experienced that for so long.

It reminded me that all of this would be gone one day so it was best to just take it in as much as I could as the sun started rising eventually, night becoming day as I had turned on sensation and the cool crisp breeze felt lovely.

I turned around to wake the others but I saw that Kyle had already woken up, looking down at Sarah with soft eyes and he gently moved her hair aside on her forehead, just as she awoke with a jerk and let out short quiet gasping breaths.

"I was dreaming about dogs," Sarah said groggily as she went to sit up, Kyle's coat sliding down a little.

"We use them to spot Terminators," Kyle told her and Sarah sighed.

"The world you and Adam come from is pretty terrifying," Sarah replied.

"Yeah, it's not fun so you're lucky that you get to grow up in a world where the only thing you have to worry about is getting to work on time, paying the bills, and dealing with asshole customers," I commented.

Kyle and Sarah got up before we took the flashlight and first-aid kit, left the tunnel, and headed out into the wilderness as I kept my rifle ready just in case the infiltrator was nearby.

When we made it to the road, I stored my rifle in my mass and Kyle put Lt. Traxler's revolver in his pocket as Sarah handed him his coat back, the three of us walking on the side of the road until we arrived at a building and Sarah went to go call her mother as Kyle went over to a pickup truck to see if he could hotwire it.

While he did that, I kept my eyes and ears open for the infiltrator since it could be anywhere but Sarah was finished speaking to her mother and hung up until she went to check the phonebook, searching for something until she found it.

"You find something?" I inquired as Sarah appeared to have an idea and she showed me the phonebook, pointing to where it showed Cyberdyne Systems' phone number and address.

"Adam, what if we can prevent Skynet from ever being created? If we can take down Cyberdyne Systems, then Skynet won't be created and Judgment Day will never happen," Sarah told me and I started looking uncertain.

"I don't know, this seems a bit risky since you're talking about storming a government-contracted building and destroying it so even if we were to make it inside, we would need to deal with armed security.

If we were to somehow get past that and rig the building to blow before escaping, there's the matter of law enforcement responding to the location so that means god knows how many police officers and SWAT teams showing up.

Besides, I don't think Reese will go for it since destroying Cyberdyne Systems' main building to prevent Skynet's creation is not his mission, and he is stubborn as hell when it comes to finishing a mission," I pointed out logically.

"Well, then we'll just have to convince him," Sarah stated before she tore the page that had Cyberdyne Systems' address off the phonebook before putting the phonebook away, and walked over to Kyle while I was right behind her. 

"Come on, we gotta get a car," Kyle told us as he shut the driver-side door of the truck and took out the revolver before starting to make his way to the road.

"No, put away the gun since I can get us a ride," Sarah assured him while we were walking until she showed Kyle the page.

"Look what I found," Sarah said as she held up the page.

"What's that?" Kyle inquired as he took the page and read through it.

"Cyberdyne Systems, isn't that it?" Sarah asked.

"What about it?" Kyle questioned.

"Listen to this, they develop this revolutionary new thing, this m..." Sarah trailed off as she struggled to say the word.

"Molecular memory," Kyle said to help her, and Sarah nodded.

"Right, so they become hotshot computer guys and develop this thing for the government, right?" Sarah inquired.

"Right, that's the way it was told to me," Kyle replied, looking like he was wondering where she was going with this.

"So, we can eighty-six the bastard by blowing it up so it'll never happen," Sarah told him, only Kyle frowned and shook his head.

"It's tactically dangerous, so we lay low," Kyle refused before Sarah grabbed him to stop him.

"No, Reese, think it through. We can prevent the war and there's nobody else because if we go to somebody official, we end up in jail again and he's got us again.

We've got to do it ourselves," Sarah reasoned and I stepped forward.

"Sarge, maybe we should consider it at least," I added.

"That's not my mission," Kyle stated and Sarah scowled.

"Listen and understand that I'm not a military objective. I'm a person, and you don't own me," Sarah snapped and I cringed since since was getting ugly.

"Let's go," Kyle said sternly as he grabbed Sarah's arm and started moving her more forcibly.

"Sarge, easy," I reasoned as Sarah started struggling.

"Fuck you, now let me go!" Sarah shouted before swatting Kyle's hand away and she started running into the woods.

"Sarah, wait!" I yelled before Kyle and I chased after her.

We ran through the woods after Sarah while Kyle kept calling out for her until he managed to grab her and they fell to the ground as I hurried over to try and separate them.

"Let go!" Sarah screamed as she fought like hell to get free.

"Sarah!" Kyle yelled as Sarah got free.

Kyle went to grab her and she struggled before punching him in the face and he instinctively whipped out Lt. Traxler's revolver to aim at her as my eyes widened and Sarah froze, Kyle having a wild look in his eyes so I slowly moved in front of Sarah with one hand up to placate him.

"Sarge, calm down...remember, if she dies, then humanity dies so put the gun away, please," I reasoned cautiously while Sarah was letting out shaky breaths until Kyle managed to snap out of it and lower the gun, sitting down and just taking in the fact that he nearly killed Sarah.

"Jesus Christ, Reese. Don't you see that I am scared? I don't want to spend my whole life waiting for that thing to catch up to me, always looking over my shoulder and wondering if I left some tiny clue behind!" Sarah cried while struggling not to sob as Kyle was looking around at all the beauty and so much green that was around us, the hardened man beginning to look emotional.

"Kyle?" I questioned with a look of concern.

"Adam, we don't belong here...we weren't meant to see this. It's like a dream...this...and this, and her," Kyle whimpered as he teared up while picking a flower and I started letting out shaky breaths, knowing that all of this would be gone one day.

"I know...god, I know...it's so beautiful. It fucking hurts...so goddamn much," I admitted as I started crying and so did Kyle, the two of us just completely overwhelmed by everything all around us after going through so much hell in the future.

"Sarah, you can't understand...it's gone, all gone. All of it, it's gone," Kyle sobbed as he and I couldn't stop crying.

"We're so goddamn tired...just so tired," I admitted in despair, just wanting to go back to my true home.

I missed my friends and relatives so much, just desperately wanting to see them again after suffering so much in this universe but I knew I would never see them again and that made it so much worse, knowing that I was completely alone.

"Kyle, Adam, we can change it to prevent it from happening so we have to at least try. There is no fate but what we make for ourselves, right?

Come on, what do you say?" Sarah asked and I sniffled as Kyle nodded.

"Okay," Kyle said as we stood up and my false tears were absorbed into my mass.

"If we're going to do this, then we need explosives and I doubt the military will just hand them over to us," I pointed out as we started making our way back to the road.

"I'm sure we'll figure something out," Sarah said as we made it back to the road.

We walked for a little bit until we flagged a semi down and had the driver give us a ride to the nearest motel, the driver being kind enough to take us to the Tiki Motel until he soon came to a stop in front of the motel and we got out of the truck.

"Thank you," Sarah told the driver, who blared his horn in response as the truck drove away and I made sure to change my scent into a regular human one to not alert the German shepherd that was chained up nearby.

"Uh, is this enough?" Kyle asked as he pulled out a huge wad of cash and Sarah looked at him before moving his hand down and taking a little bit of the money.

"Yeah, it's enough. I don't want to ask where you got it," Sarah said.

"Yeah, you probably don't want to know how he got it," I added as we approached the window leading to the front office.

Sarah went to speak to the person manning the front office as Kyle went over to the dog before holding his hand out to let the dog sniff it, then he started petting the animal while I held out my hand to let the dog sniff that as well.

I made sure to mind my inhuman strength as I went to scratch the dog on the side of the neck, making the German shepherd pant happily as my systems picked up information and data while my HUD identified the animal by its species, breed, age, and gender.

Although I was no longer human and inhabiting the body of something that was once my enemy, it still amazed me that I was able to pick up information and being able to identify it accurately just by touching something.

Sarah was able to get a room for her and Kyle while I got a room next to theirs for myself, then we took our motel keys and headed to the room Kyle and Sarah would be using for the night.

We entered the room after unlocking the door and I checked the bathroom while Kyle checked the rest of the motel room, everything looking clear for now while Sarah sighed.

"I'm dying for a shower, and we should check your bandage, too," Sarah told Kyle as she sat on the bed.

"Later, I'm going out for supplies," Kyle said and I nodded.

"Okay, I'll stay here with her and keep an eye on the perimeter," I said as Kyle went to leave but he paused and turned back, taking out Lt. Traxler's revolver.

"Keep this," Kyle told Sarah before handing her the revolver and leaving after that, then Sarah looked at the revolver hesitantly as she placed it on the bed and stared at it for a little bit until she picked it up.

"You ever fired one of those before?" I asked and Sarah shook her head.

"No," Sarah replied and I walked over to her.

"Okay, let me see it for a second," I requested and Sarah handed me the revolver, which I took before opening the cylinder and removing the bullets that were inside until I closed the cylinder and held the revolver out.

"Okay, the weapon's empty so take it and see how it feels," I continued when Sarah took the revolver, holding it in her hand and staring at it in uncertainty.

"It's heavy," Sarah told me and I nodded.

"Yeah, but you'll get used to having it with you, and a revolver's a good choice as a starting weapon since it's easy to use and doesn't jam," I told her while Sarah looked up at me.

"So, how do I use it?" Sarah inquired and I kneeled next to her before helping her aim the revolver.

"Okay, the safety is here so you take it off if you want to fire the weapon, and you aim down these notches on the top of the revolver to get better accuracy.

You'll also need to take up a stable stance but what you need to look out for is the recoil since the gun will kick when you shoot it, but before that, you steady your heart rate with slow calming breaths so that your accuracy doesn't suffer.

One thing you need to be aware of is that you never aim a weapon at someone unless you intend to use it, but when you are ready to use it, gently squeeze the trigger.

That revolver is a double action so it'll manually feed a new round in the chamber with each shot fired," I explained while showing Sarah how to use the revolver, and she followed my instructions as she got ready to use the gun until she gently squeezed the trigger and there was a click.

"How do you know all of this?" Sarah asked while lowering the revolver and I scratched the back of my head.

"You pick up a few things in the future, and the Skynet model I'm currently inhabiting has detailed files on different weapons and how they operate," I replied and Sarah blinked at that.

"That's...pretty useful," Sarah said and I chuckled.

"Yeah, guess there are some perks to being a machine," I remarked before handing the bullets to Sarah, who went to open the cylinder and put them in with my guidance until I sighed.

"Hey, I want to apologize for snapping at you last night...I know you're scared and overwhelmed by everything that's happening and me doing that didn't help," I said and Sarah sent me a concerned look.

"It's okay, I guess I didn't consider what you and Kyle have been through so I should be the one to say sorry for being insensitive," Sarah replied.

"Still, you have every fight to be frustrated so guess we're both dealing with a lot right now," I remarked and Sarah smiled until I left the motel room and entered mine before getting my weapons out and doing a weapon check after that.

Hours had gone by and I spent most of the day either making sure my weapons were fully loaded and in perfect condition or keeping an eye on the perimeter as Kyle was gone for all that time.

As the sun was starting to set, I went to check on Sarah after storing my weapons in my mass and found her sitting on the bed, looking like she had recently taken a shower.

We waited until Kyle came back and placed a couple of bags full of supplies on the table before ripping the bags open and letting the supplies spill onto the table.

"What have we got? Mothballs, corn syrup, ammonia, so what's for dinner?" Sarah joked as I started spreading out the ingredients to make explosives.

"Plastique," Kyle replied and he and I started getting everything set up.

"That sounds good, so what is it?" Sarah inquired.

"Nitroglycerin, it's a compound to make explosives so we learned to make it," I replied and Sarah blinked at that.

We opened boxes and other stuff before we started carefully using the ingredients to mix them into nitroglycerin and started using a few things to craft what would become a pipe bomb, creating most of the components and putting them together while also teaching Sarah how to do it.

"Make sure there's none on the threads like this, and screw the end cap on," Kyle instructed and Sarah started doing it in a way that was unsafe before I grabbed her wrist.

"Very gently, you don't want that going off in your hands," I warned and Sarah let out a shaky sigh as she screwed the end cap on more carefully.

"You two must've had fun childhoods," Sarah told us nervously as Kyle took the nearly complete pipe bomb and examined it.

"That's good...six more like that, and Adam and I will get started on the fuses," Kyle said before we continued to craft the pipe bombs.

We created the rest and got to work on the fuses, completing the pipe bombs and placing them on the table until I decided to get back to my room and left the motel room to give Kyle and Sarah some time alone since I knew what would happen next.

I went into my motel room and locked the door, taking out my weapons and ammo to place them on the table before a thought occurred to me.

I decided to try something and headed into the bathroom, putting a stopper in the drain and getting into the tub when I turned silver and melted into a thick metallic liquid that filled up the tub.

It felt nice, just letting my shape go and spreading out so I should do this more often since it's relaxing in a way but I couldn't relax too much because the infiltrator will be here soon and it was that thought that had been on my mind as I rested for a little bit.   

Chapter Text

I rested for a little bit before reforming back into my human appearance and going to get my weapons, storing them in my mass, and heading to Sarah's and Kyle's motel room before I knocked on the door and let myself in to see them get ready.

"Hey, you two ready to go?" I asked as Sarah was busy tying her shoelaces.

"Yeah, we should be ready to go," Kyle replied just as Sarah stood up with a bag and thrust it at him.

"Think fast!" Sarah exclaimed playfully, and I saw Kyle flinch back but then he smiled and chuckled.

This had to be the first time I'd ever seen him smile and laugh so it made me smile genuinely, though it didn't last long as the dog outside started barking like crazy and we all quickly looked at the door tensely.

"Out the back window in the bathroom, go," I ordered as I pulled out the HK91A3 to hand it and its extra mags to Kyle while I took out the modified custom AR rifle and we hurried to the bathroom.

I opened the window and let Kyle and Sarah go first before I climbed out after them and went to shut the window before we started making our way to the front.

When we got to the front of the motel, there was gunfire occurring in the room we used to be in when it stopped so the infiltrator must be searching for us right now.

We ran over to a black pickup with 4x4 lights and Kyle opened the driver-side door before yanking the driver out and throwing him to the ground, then he and Sarah got in the front while I hopped into the back.

Kyle shifted the truck into reverse and backed us out of the parking space while I switched my custom rifle to fully automatic, then Kyle shifted the truck to drive and he drove to where the open doorway of his and Sarah's room was.

The infiltrator came out at the moment and the truck slammed into it, knocking it backward to the ground as it dropped the AR-18 rifle and we backed up to the street.

We quickly drove away once we made it onto the street and it didn't take long for the infiltrator to catch up on a motorcycle as I got my rifle ready and started aiming at the relentless machine.

My aim was thrown off when the truck started swerving to avoid a couple of semis when the infiltrator started firing at us with the AR-18, making me shoot back as rapid gunfire broke out with bullets hitting the tailgate of the truck.

Kyle swerved to avoid the gunfire as I shot at the infiltrator and was forced to reload, just as I heard Kyle telling Sarah to drive and I glanced back to see them switching seats as we entered a tunnel.

"Faster, drive faster!" Kyle shouted as I fired at the infiltrator.

It didn't take long for me to hear the familiar sound of a fuse being lit and glanced back to see Kyle leaning out the passenger window with a pipe bomb, and he started throwing pipe bombs at the infiltrator.

They didn't work since Sarah swerving to avoid other vehicles was throwing Kyle's aim a bit as we exited the tunnel while I kept firing and reloading.

Kyle was about to throw another pipe bomb at the infiltrator when we got shot at and Kyle was hit as he let out a scream of pain, dropping the explosive and falling forward until he slumped onto the windowsill and the explosive went off near us.

"Sarge, holy shit!" I yelled as Sarah quickly looked to see Kyle slumped on the window.

"Kyle! Oh my god!" Sarah shouted in horror as she went to pull Kyle back in as I fired my last mag and the rifle ran empty at the worst time.

"Fuck!" I exclaimed before tossing the rifle and pulling out the S&W 686 from my mass and started shooting back at the infiltrator.

The killer cyborg also dropped its empty rifle, took out a nickel-plated S&W Model 15, and fired at us as one of the review mirrors cracked from getting hit.

Once the infiltrator got close enough on our left, Sarah swerved into it and the truck rammed the motorcycle into the guardrail, sending it onto its side as the infiltrator slid across the ground.

The truck rocked and I heard Sarah scream as my eyes widened, the truck sent flying into the air as I was thrown a few feet away with the 686 revolver flying out of my hands.

I hit the ground and rolled across it as the truck wound upside down with me coming to a stop on my back, though I quickly got up and ran over to the wreck and kneeled to peer inside as Kyle was flat on his back and wheezing in pain while Sarah was crawling over to him.

"Jesus," I said while spotting the infiltrator lying on the opposite road across from ours.

It started moving and I wondered what it would take to kill that fucking thing, so I was about to head over there to finish it off myself when a semi ran it over.

The driver slammed on the brakes and the tires screeched as the large vehicle struggled to come to a stop, though it managed to slow down to a stop without jackknifing.

The driver soon got out and started checking each section under the tanker trailer when he reached the back and was yanked by the infiltrator, the machine breaking the man's neck to kill him.

The infiltrator dropped the dead body and started limping its way to the cab, indicating that it suffered major damage but as long as it was still moving, it was still a serious threat.

The infiltrator got into the cab and the passenger quickly got out before running away and it was quiet for a few seconds until the engine started roaring, the truck beginning to move before doing a U-turn and heading straight to us.

"Oh shit," I said and went to help Sarah pull Kyle out of the wreck, my inhuman strength dragging him out easily before we forced him to stand and managed to get away in time as the semi smashed into the wreck.

The infiltrator slammed on the brakes and then I heard the truck coming after us, making me look back to see the massive vehicle chasing us as I saw a menacing red dot glowing in the cab.

"Faster!" Sarah shouted as we held Kyle up, though he was stumbling quickly due to being injured and that didn't help as we turned a corner and were about to pass a dumpster until Kyle forced our arms off him and he fell to his hands and knees.

"Don't stop, run!" Kyle yelled and Sarah and I kept running.

We ran onto the sidewalk and the roar of the engine sounded as if a demonic hellhound from the fiery pits of hell was after us, which scared the hell out of me but we kept running.

"Keep running!" I yelled urgently as we got off the sidewalk.

We ran to the left as I heard the truck turning and ramming a parked car out of the way when a massive explosion erupted behind us, forcing us to keep running.

We ducked behind a building for cover and I kept Sarah back as the area lit up from the ball of fire that exploded and flaming debris rained down, then it was over and we went to peer out.

The truck was now a flaming pile of scrap but the infiltrator got out of what was left of the cab, the machine now on fire as Sarah shuddered at the sight.

The infiltrator stumbled through the fire as I watched grimly when it collapsed and rolled onto its back, its flesh, hair, and clothes burning away until it looked like a skeleton that just turned its head to look at us.

I will never forget that sight for as long as I live as Sarah slumped in pure relief when we left our cover and started searching for Kyle, not seeing any signs of him yet.

"Sarah, Adam!" a familiar voice called out and we looked to see it was Kyle, who was barely able to stand on his own two feet.

"Kyle!" Sarah gasped as we ran over to him and Sarah threw her arms around his neck, the two of them falling to their knees.

"Jesus sarge, you look like hell," I said as I went to check his injuries.

"I certainly feel like it," Kyle groaned and Sarah let out a breathless laugh.

"We did it, Kyle. We got it," Sarah said tiredly, sounding completely exhausted.

I didn't feel victorious because I knew it wasn't over and as I went to tell them we needed to leave quickly, the sound of moving debris got my attention.

I slowly looked with an expression of horror as I saw the familiar nightmare rising from the flames, its metal horrific skeleton appearance exposed for all to see as I trembled with terrifying memories of the future war flooding my mind, just as Sarah and Kyle saw it as well when the T-800 leered down at us.

"No! No!" Sarah screamed in horror and denial as Kyle and I frantically pulled her up to her feet.

It just wouldn't fucking die and it reminded me just how horrible these things truly were while my words of how it'll never be enough came back to haunt me while we just ran to get away from that fucking thing.

We fled to a door that led into a building and I punched the glass, shattering it before I reached in and unlocked the door until Sarah and I helped Kyle get inside.

We hurried down a long dark corridor while trying a door on our right but it was locked so we kept moving, and I looked back to see the T-800 following us as it limped through the corridor.

That terrified me as I felt like that frightened 18-year-old again during our attempt to escape the horror behind us, then we opened a metal door and I spun around to quickly close it.

I barred the door and jumped back when I heard the T-800 banging on it so we quickly moved away from the door, heading into the main factory when Kyle moved our arms off him.

"Wait," Kyle groaned before stumbling over to the nearby consoles and started messing with them as the factory came alive and started its daily routine.

"What are you doing?" Sarah questioned and I looked at her.

"He's using the machines here for cover, so that thing can't track us," I said when the T-800 banged on the door again and saw that the door was going to give at any moment as holes were now on it.

"Kyle, come on!" Sarah shouted frantically before we forced him to move until his legs gave out from under him and fell onto the floor with a pained grunt.

"Kyle, don't you fucking dare pass out on us!" I yelled as Sarah tried to get him up.

"Leave me...here," Kyle groaned weakly when I saw that the T-800 made a hole big enough to reach for what was barring the door and Sarah looked to see that when she shook the badly injured man.

"Move it, Reese! On your feet, soldier! On your feet!" Sarah shouted gruffly, forcing Kyle to stand as we pulled him up to his feet and we ran for it.

I heard the door opening and the sound of that thing heading inside the factory floor, so now it was in here with us and that scared me more than anything as we stayed low.

We carefully and quietly navigated the factory while trying not to be seen by the T-800 that was hunting us, passing various automated machinery when Sarah accidentally activated the giant presser.

I flinched at the loud noise since that was sure to alert the T-800 so we moved a little faster as Kyle went to take a metal pipe that was nearby and we kept moving until we went around a corner that led to a staircase but we couldn't go any further on the ground floor.

"Fuck, dead end," I whispered.

"Go back, go back," Sarah said quietly and we turned around to go back the way we came.

We froze when the T-800 came around the corner and saw us, making us back up as it started approaching us menacingly while we went up the stairs, not taking our eyes off it as I was letting out trembling breaths when we made it to the catwalk.

"Run, Sarah," Kyle said.

"No," Sarah refused, we quickly looked back at her.

"Run!" Kyle bellowed and Sarah hesitated.

"Run, goddammit!" I screamed and that made her flinch before she ran, then Kyle and I glared at the T-800.

"Come on, motherfucker," Kyle growled hatefully as he got ready to swing the pipe and I held up my fists.

Kyle swung the pipe with all his strength once the T-800 got closer and he hit it a few times, though it did nothing as Kyle was struck in the face twice and the force sent him down the stairs.

I charged and tackled into the T-800, punching it and throwing it into guardrails and I kept hitting it with anger on my face but it ripped a pipe off one of the guardrails and it swung the railing into my face.

I was sent over a railing and fell to the bottom, going to get back up when I heard the sound of a fuse being lit and I quickly looked up to see Kyle shoving the last pipe bomb into the T-800's torso before he went to roll down the stairs.

"Shit!" I yelped before rolling into cover and keeping my head down until an explosion happened.

I heard sounds of shrapnel and pieces of the T-800 landing on sections of the catwalk and the floor, then it was silent and I stood up to go find Sarah, who was nearby as she was sitting.

"Sarah, thank god you're okay," I said as I kneeled to check on her.

"Adam, where's Kyle?" Sarah groaned and I shook my head.

"I don't know, we need to find him," I stated and Sarah went to stand up, only to exclaim in pain.

"What? What is it?" I questioned while looking worried.

"My leg," Sarah whimpered as she gripped her left leg, so I went to carefully move her leg and saw a piece of metal sticking in it as I grimaced but I used my scan vision to see what the damage was and looked up at Sarah.

"Okay, it didn't hit any major arteries and blood vessels while there won't be any muscle or tissue damage so I can pull it out without worrying about you bleeding out, but you'll still need medical attention," I told her as Sarah groaned in pain.

"Just pull it out, for god's sake," Sarah grunted and I nodded before going to grab the metal piece.

"Okay, this is going to hurt so I'll make it fast," I said before pulling the metal piece out and Sarah shouted in pain from that, then I tossed the metal piece away.

"Kyle...we need to find him," Sarah groaned so I looked around and saw Kyle lying on his side nearby, then I helped Sarah stand while putting her arm around my shoulder and holding her waist as we moved over to where Kyle was as I had a sinking feeling that I knew what would happen next.

"Kyle," Sarah called out as I helped her get down and she moved Kyle onto his back, then I felt nothing but pain and grief as I saw his bloody face staring up at us with no signs that he was breathing.

"Fuck, goddammit...I'm sorry, sarge," I whimpered as I struggled not to cry but Sarah was openly sobbing at losing the one man she loved briefly.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw movement and quickly yanked Sarah out of the way as the upper torso of the T-800 tried to grab her but I slammed my foot on its back and grabbed its head, wrenching and pulling until I ripped its head off with sparks happening until I glared hatefully at the metal skull.

"Fuck you and fuck Skynet!" I snarled in rage before crushing the skull with both hands and tossing it away.

When that was over, I hurried over to Sarah to check on her and she threw her arms around my torso, shuddering and sobbing from the horrific trauma she experienced so I held her just as I heard the sound of sirens arriving outside.

It didn't take long until the first responders showed up and placed Sarah on a stretcher before wheeling her out of the building and I was taken outside as Kyle was placed in a body bag.

It was morning as we left the building and Sarah was taken to an ambulance before I requested the paramedics to come with, and told them that Sarah was a close friend of mine, so I was allowed in the back and I just sat back before the ambulance started driving away and taking us to the hospital after that.

After Sarah and I were taken to the hospital, she had to stay there for a few weeks to recover from her injuries until she was released while I refused any medical care since I was fine.

While we were in the hospital, it was discovered that Sarah was pregnant with John and that made us determined to teach him everything we knew so that he could lead the resistance to victory one day.

But I still at least wanted him to have some kind of love and affection growing up so that he wouldn't feel as if he were a burden to us and think that all we cared about was training him to become a soldier.

When Sarah and I left the hospital, we stayed on the move for months as I continued to teach Sarah everything I knew so that she wouldn't be as helpless as before, though I knew that she also wanted to learn out of the guilt of losing Kyle.

I sometimes heard her crying when she thought I didn't notice and she woke up in a panic from nightmares, so like me, she wasn't an ordinary teenager anymore, not after what she's been through.

Now, we were driving down a long stretch of road in the middle of the Mexican desert while I was sporting a pair of blue jeans, black boots, a black t-shirt, and sunglasses while my face and hair color were slightly altered as Sarah was speaking on the voice recorder with our German shepherd Pugsly sitting in the backseat.

As we were driving, the jeep became low on gas so I noticed a gas station on our right and pointed it out until she turned the car into the gas station and we pulled up to one of the gas pumps.

The owner of the gas station walked over and Sarah got out carefully as she was now visibly pregnant, opening a book to help her speak to the man and they conversated in Spanish until the man went to fill up the gas tank until she got back in the car and continued to speak on the voice recorder.

"Should I tell you about your father? Boy, that's a tough one. Will it affect your decision to send him here, knowing that he is your father?

If you don't send Kyle, you can never be. God, a person could go crazy, thinking about this. I suppose Adam and I will tell you, we owe him that.

Maybe it'll help if you know that in the few hours that we had together, we loved a lifetime's worth," Sarah spoke into the recording solemnly until there was a flash with the sound of our picture being taken.

We looked to see that it was a little boy as he removed the photo from the camera before holding it out and speaking to Sarah in Spanish.

My built-in translator helped me understand what he was saying and I tried not to laugh as the gas station owner walked over and Sarah looked at him once the boy was done speaking.

"What did he just say?" Sarah asked while the man looked amused.

"He says you're very beautiful, senora. He's ashamed to ask you for five American dollars for his picture, but if he doesn't, his father will beat him," the man translated and Sarah smirked at the little boy.

"Pretty good hustle, kid," Sarah said before negotiating to four dollars in Spanish, and the little boy agreed before Sarah handed four dollars to the boy and he thanked her while giving the picture over to her and running off.

I chuckled at the interaction before I saw the photo, seeing me and Sarah in it and that's when I understood why John wanted me to see it back in the future because the man in the photo was me, someone destined to be John's father figure and caretaker.

I was shaken out of my thoughts when the little boy shouted excitedly in Spanish and my eyes hardened from what he said as Sarah went to look at the man.

"What did he just say?" Sarah asked.

"He said there's a storm coming in," the man replied and Sarah narrowed her eyes slightly as she and I shared a look before returning our attention to the man.

"We know," I said grimly before Sarah put her sunglasses on and started the car.

We drove away from the gas station, heading into an uncertain future as I just knew that this was only the beginning and that the final battle had only just begun.

Chapter Text

I was in a motel room, doing a weapon check while cleaning and maintaining them as they consisted of a SIG-Sauer P226 with an early LASERAIM sight, a custom Colt AR-15 Sporter II with it modified to have a fully automatic option, a Franchi SPAS-12, and a Remington 870 fitted with a long barrel that had a specialized under-barrel laser sight.

It had been years since the events of 1984 and during that time, Sarah gave birth to John and she wanted to train him to be the leader of the resistance but I also wanted him to at least be able to have some kind of childhood while that happened.

Sarah and I argued about it but she relented as long as we also trained him, which I was okay with so we raised John in places like Central and South America as I made sure to give him as much love and affection as possible.

Legally, I was his godfather and John saw me as an uncle figure in his life while he asked me about his father, and I told him as much as I could about Kyle and how he was a brave man who sacrificed everything for Sarah and how much he loved her.

I kept my status as a Terminator a secret from John since I still wanted him to enjoy being a kid for a little bit longer and have the childhood Kyle never did, my way of honoring my fallen squad leader.

Sadly, Sarah was distant and had a lot of difficulty expressing love and affection to John because of her PTSD, and it was heartbreaking to watch, though I tried to help her cope with her trauma since basic psychology is a part of my sub-routines while I wanted to be there for her so that she wouldn't be alone.

I also made sure to prepare over the years by getting supplies from various arms dealers on the black market since I knew the T-1000 would arrive, and I couldn't take any chances because of how dangerous it was.

Still, Sarah tried to blow up a computer factory despite my objections and got arrested for it, so I was forced to go into hiding and lay low, but made sure to watch John from a distance as he was taken by Child Protective Services and placed in a foster home.

I also took precautions to make sure that John was safe as I moved from motel room to motel room around the area where John lived and regularly patrolled the neighborhood where he lived while using a different appearance, human or animal, each time.

I could tell that John wasn't happy living with his foster family since his foster mother wasn't exactly nice to him and his foster father was lazy and couldn't care less about raising him.

Because of that, John started going into a rebellious phase as he became more defiant, got into trouble with the police, and listened to rock and heavy metal music while I kept an eye on him.

Now, I knew that last night was when the T-1000 and the T-800 protector had arrived in the past so I made sure to get ready to follow John to the Galleria since I couldn't afford to make any mistakes.

I was now wearing false clothes that consisted of a brown leather jacket, a green t-shirt, blue jeans, and black biker boots as I finished making sure my weapons were ready and loaded.

I put them in my mass and left the motel room before heading to my motorcycle that was parked at the space in front of my room and I got on, starting up the motorcycle and driving away from the motel.

I drove through the streets of LA as I made my way to the neighborhood where John lives and kept my eyes open for any signs of either the protector or the T-1000 since there was a good chance I might encounter them during my drive to John's house.

Eventually, I arrived in the neighborhood John lives in and parked a safe distance away from John's house as I saw his foster mother picking up the newspaper that was on the lawn and went to speak to John.

She called out to him as he was listening to You Could Be Mine by Guns N Roses on his boombox and revving his dirt bike, ignoring his foster mother who stormed into the house in frustration.

John and his friend with the mullet left the garage and hopped on the dirt bike just as John's foster father came out to tell him to listen to his foster mother and to get inside to clean his room, only for John to defiantly say that she wasn't his mother while using his name.

John and his friend took off and I drove after them, following from a distance so that I wouldn't get spotted as they drove through the streets before hanging out for most of the morning and then came to a stop at an ATM.

John and his friend got off the bike before the former went to hack into the ATM to get money from it and went to get back on the bike, driving around for a little bit and talking to a couple of girls until they took the channels to get to the Galleria faster.

I used shortcuts to get to the Galleria first and went to park in the parking garage, getting off my bike and I went to enter the shopping mall as I passed people who were entering or exiting the building.

I walked through the shopping mall as I passed customers or people who were either there to hang out or go out on dates while I went over to a food court and ordered a meal to enjoy while I waited.

I ate my food and drank my soda as my scan vision was scanning each person to make sure that they were human when I spotted John and his friend going up a set of stairs that led to a few stores and an arcade on the upper floor.

I finished my food and drink before dumping the trash in a nearby bin, making my way to the stairs and heading up to the upper floor to find John.

I went into the arcade and searched for him while also keeping an eye out for the T-1000 since it was most likely here now and looking for John while the protector had probably arrived as well.

As I searched the arcade, I caught a glimpse of the T-1000 that was in the arcade as well so I didn't have much time and needed to find John quickly, which motivated me to find John even quicker as I moved faster until I spotted John playing on an arcade and hurried over to him.

"John," I called out and John went to look at me until his eyes widened in surprise.

"Adam?" John gasped before I went to kneel next to him.

"Listen to me carefully, something really bad is going to happen and we need to get out of here fast, so drop what you're doing and come with me," I warned grimly just as John's friend ran up to us.

"John, there's this cop scoping for you. Check it out," the kid notified him before pointing behind me and John went to look, making me look back to see the T-1000 talking to a kid who pointed at where we were.

"We got to go, now," I stated urgently and had John stay next to me with my hand on his arm as we quickly went out through the back before John's friend could react.

"Where are we going?" John asked as we hurried through the maintenance halls of the mall.

"The parking garage, my bike is parked there so stay close," I told him as we kept running through the halls and was about to pass a janitor.

"Hey, you two aren't supposed to be in here!" the man shouted but John and I ignored him as we went through the double doors and were about to go down the hall on our right.

We stopped as we saw the protector, who was wearing biker's clothes as it held a package containing roses but it opened the package to reveal a Winchester 1887 with a sawed-off stock, barrel, and cutaway trigger-guard as it cocked the lever to chamber a shell.

John's eyes widened in horror and he frantically ran back the way he came in a panic as I was right behind him, John trying a door on our right but it was locked and we skidded to a stop.

The protector aimed the shotgun supposedly at us with one hand while the T-1000 came around the corner from where we came from, pulling out a Beretta 92FS from its replicated law enforcement duty belt and going to aim at us as John clutched at my jacket in fear.

"Get down," the protector ordered emotionlessly and that was my cue to drop to the ground before yanking John down with me.

The protector fired at the T-1000 and John let out a startled scream as the T-1000 jerked to the right from getting its shoulder hit by the buckshot, its shoulder having a metal crater in it as it righted itself.

The T-1000 went to aim the Beretta before I moved John out of the line of fire and the protector went to use its body to shield him from the gunfire, the janitor getting killed by the barrage of bullets while John screamed in terror.

The shooting stopped and I pulled the SPAS-12 from my mass as the protector forced the nearby locked door open with its fist, forcing John inside as the T-1000 reloaded the Beretta.

It fired at us again as I spun on one foot and the protector and I fired, our shots knocking the T-1000 back every time we fired as the protector kept approaching it until the T-1000 was launched to the ground from one blast to the torso.

I hurried over to John as he peered out while shaking and I saw the silver craters on the T-1000 closing up while the protector was reloading the Winchester before it went to stand up, causing me to grab John's arm with one hand and we ran after that.

We soon burst through a door leading to the stairwell and hurried our way down to the parking garage, quickly arriving and running over to our bikes as we got on them.

I started mine up while John was struggling to start his when the T-1000 left the stairwell and John got the dirt bike started, then we sped away as I looked back to see the T-1000 chasing after us.

"John, speed up!" I shouted and that made John speed up a little more while I made my motorcycle go faster.

We were forced to head to the left to avoid smashing into a car that was backing out and we went into the air through one of the openings, startling a woman who nearly got hit as John and I landed on the road.

We swerved right and drove down the street at full speed when we made it to an intersection and swerved left, causing a semi-truck/tow truck to swerve as the driver blared its horn at us.

That almost caused an accident as I looked back to see the T-1000 running over to the truck before opening the door to rip the driver out and throwing him out onto the road, the T-1000 getting in and now the truck started chasing us.

This reminded me of that horrible night 10 years ago when the infiltrator chased me, Kyle, and Sarah in a semi but I stayed focused as the T-1000 rammed cars out of the way.

John and I avoided cars during our attempted escape from the T-1000 when we swerved onto a path that would lead us down into the LA River, making our way into the channel and driving for a bit until we slowed down and came to a stop.

I aimed my shotgun back at where we came from as my targeting systems were searching for the threat when there was the sound of tires screeching and the truck came smashing through the guardrail on the bridge behind us, the truck falling down into the channel and starting to approach us.

"Oh crap, drive!" I shouted before John and I gunned our engines and started speeding forward as I fired back at the truck.

The buckshot impacted the vehicle which was looking worse for wear after landing into the channel, John and I driving as fast as we could to get away but the truck kept up with us.

We swerved into a smaller channel and the truck did the same before crashing into the walls as it swerved left and right, just as my shotgun ran empty.

"Shit!" I shouted before storing the gun in my mass and just focused on driving for now.

Suddenly, I heard gunshots and looked to see that the protector was following us from the upper area on our left as it fired the Winchester at the truck before shooting a locked gate connecting to a bridge in front of me and John.

We went past a smaller bridge and I looked back as the roof of the truck was sheared off by the bridge, John also looking back just as the T-1000 sat up and pushed the cracked windshield out of the way.

The truck started speeding up and rammed into us from behind, making us jerk forward from each impact as John yelped, and just when I was about to say fuck it and get up to the cab to deal with this personally, the roar of a Harley happened until the truck backed off and started swerving.

I looked back to see that the protector was now in the channel and trying to get past the truck, but it kept swerving to block it from getting past.

The protector managed to get by the truck and drove up to us when it grabbed John and yanked him off the dirt bike, making him let out a startled yell as he was placed in front of the protector, who took out the Winchester and shot one of the truck's tires.

The truck swerved as we headed through a small bridge and the T-1000 slammed on the breaks, not that it didn't do any good as the truck smashed right between both tunnels and the vehicle exploded.

We soon braked to a stop and looked back at the flames engulfing one of the tunnels when there was moving, making the protector take out the Winchester to cock it before aiming at what was moving, which turned out to be a flaming tire.

The protector moved its weapon away and holstered it until we started driving away from the wreck, though I knew the T-1000 would be back eventually since, like the infiltrator, it doesn't die that easily.

We kept driving as we went to get as far away from the T-1000 as possible as we got onto a street and drove for a little bit until John started looking fed up with what was happening.

"Okay, time out! Stop the bikes! Time out! Come on, stop the bikes!" John shouted over the roar of the engines of the motorcycles the protector and I were driving.

"Okay, let's pull over into that alley!" I said loudly before the protector and I went to drive into an alley on our right, soon coming to a stop and John got off the Harley the protector was driving as he looked at me.

"Alright, Adam, I think you owe me an explanation," John told me and I nodded.

"Yeah, I know me showing up is sudden but I suspected that you were in danger and when I saw that thing that looked like a cop, I could tell it wasn't human.

Before you ask about where I've been all this time, I've been watching from a distance to make sure you're safe after your mother was arrested since I didn't want to take any chances," I explained and John looked surprised to hear that.

"So, all this time, you were still looking out for me...thanks, but this guy got shot and didn't react so does this mean that the stuff you and mom told me was true?" John inquired and I nodded.

"Yeah, all of it is true and I have a confession to make...there's one thing I haven't told you, and because that thing is after you, I believe it's time you should know," I stated.

"Tell me what?" John asked before I raised a hand and it turned silver before John's jaw dropped open.

"Holy shit, you're one of them?" John asked with a look of shock as my hand turned back to normal.

"Well, I wasn't originally but you could say I am," I replied and John went to look at the protector, who was reloading the Winchester.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but you are a Terminator, right?" John asked the protector.

"Yes, Cyberdyne Systems Model 101," the protector confirmed and John went to touch one of the bullet holes in its back before he looked at the blood that was on his finger.

"Holy shit, this is actually real. I mean...you're like a machine underneath, right? But sort of alive outside?" John inquired as I pulled out my SPAS-12 and started loading it with fresh shells.

"I'm a cybernetic organism, living tissue over a metal endoskeleton," the protector replied before John started poking its face and then touching one of the bullet holes on its chest before looking at the blood.

"This is intense...get a grip, John," John muttered before I went to pat him on the shoulder and looked at the protector.

"So, you're apparently not here to kill him so what is your mission?" I asked as the protector was finished loading the Winchester.

"My mission is to protect John Connor and assist you in achieving my mission," the protector replied as it holstered the Winchester.

"Yeah? Who sent you?" John questioned and the protector looked at him.

"You did. Thirty-five years from now, you reprogrammed me to be your protector here, in this time," the protector said and John sighed.

"This is deep..." John trailed off.

"John, I know all of this is shocking and I don't blame you for trying to wrap your head around the fact that everything Sarah and I told you turned out to be true.

Still, as for why I didn't tell you what I am, I wanted you to have some form of a childhood that your father and I never had," I explained and John bit his lip anxiously.

"So, what do we do now?" John wondered.

"We need to find someplace safe before that thing can find us so we should get going," I stated before putting my SPAS-12 away.

John nodded and went to get on the backseat of the protector's motorcycle before it and I started our engines, driving away after that as I wondered how Sarah was doing and hoped that she was safe for now as we kept driving.  

Chapter Text

"So, this other guy, he's a Terminator like you and Adam, right?" John asked over the roaring engines of the motorcycles as we drove through the night.

"Not like me. A T-1000, advanced prototype," the protector replied while we kept driving.

"You mean more advanced than you are?" John questioned.

"Yes, like Sgt. Adam Sullivan, it's a memetic polly-alloy," the protector said and John looked confused.

"What the hell does that mean?" John inquired and I looked at him.

"If you want to dumb it down, it means liquid metal in simple terms," I replied and John looked at me.

"That reminds me, what kind of Terminator are you? I've seen you eating and drinking before, not to mention you've slept before," John pointed out.

"I'm a TX-H, designed for assassination, infiltration, and extreme combat as it was made to be pretty lifelike in terms of blending in among humans.

Things such as emotions, sensations, blood, body heat, heartbeat, sleep, and consuming food and drink so no one can tell the difference because of that while the model consists of liquid metal, making it an adaptable and a hazardous unit," I explained as John's eyes widened.

"Whoa, that's pretty terrifying but cool at the same time, so were you always like this?" John asked.

"Not originally, I was once a flesh and blood human just like you but Skynet captured me and transferred my consciousness into this model at the end of the war against the machines in the future," I replied before John sent me a look of sympathy.

"That sucks, so where are we going?" John inquired.

"We have to get out of the city immediately and avoid the authorities," the protector told him.

"I got to stop by my house to pick up some stuff," John said.

"Negative, the T-1000 would definitely try to reacquire you there," the protector stated and I nodded in agreement.

"He's right, your house will be the first place it'll go to wait for you to come home so we can't take that risk," I added with a hard look.

"Are you sure?" John questioned and the protector looked back at him.

"I would," the protector replied.

"Well, I should at least call my foster parents first," John told us so I checked my internal mapping system for a nearby phone.

"There's a phone booth near here so you can call them on that," I informed him before we sped up a little.

We kept driving through the city streets as we went to find the phone booth when we soon came across a liquor store and drove into the backlot before parking in front of the phone booth and getting off our bikes.

"Look, Todd and Janelle are dicks but I got to warn them," John said and I frowned.

"They won't believe you if you tell them the truth, so say a half-truth where somebody very dangerous is after you and might go after them and that they need to leave the house.

They might call the police as they try to leave but that's unavoidable," I instructed and John nodded as he searched his pockets.

"Shit, do either of you have a quarter?" John asked and I went to take out a quarter.

"Here, good thing I keep money on me," I remarked before John took the quarter, inserted it into the payphone, and punched in his foster family's phone number before waiting for a little bit until I faintly heard Janelle's voice on the other end.

"Janelle, it's me. Yeah, is everything alright? Are you guys okay? Yeah, I'm alright," John said and he soon started looking confused and a little concerned.

"What is it?" I said quietly before John looked at me while covering the phone so that Janelle couldn't hear what we were saying.

"Something's wrong, she's never this nice," John whispered and I narrowed my eyes in suspicion.

"Okay, try to act casual since things might not be what they seem," I instructed as I could hear Max barking like crazy in the background and Todd started yelling at the dog.

"The dog's really barking," John said quietly and I tensed up since that meant the T-1000 was already there, and considering that I'd seen the second movie, I knew what was speaking to John on the other end.

"That's not a good sign...in the future, the spotter dogs we used in the resistance can detect infiltrators by scent," I told John and he started looking unsettled.

"Could he already be there?" John asked before the protector took the phone and I heard 'Janelle' asking if John was okay.

"I'm right here. I'm fine," the protector said while mimicking John's voice before covering the phone and looking at John.

"What's the dog's name?" the protector inquired.

"Max," John replied and the protector went back to speaking to 'Janelle'.

"Hey, Janelle, what's wrong with Wolfie? I can hear him barking, so is he okay?" the protector inquired and listened until it hung up the phone and looked at John.

"Your foster parents are dead," the protector informed him before walking away and John looked saddened to hear the news while I sighed.

"I'm sorry, even though they weren't good people, they still didn't deserve that," I said compassionately as we left the phone booth, and then the protector started to explain the T-1000's capabilities.

"I need a minute here, you're telling me that this thing can imitate anything it touches?" John questioned in bewilderment.

"Anything it samples by physical contact," the protector replied and John scoffed.

"Get real, like it could disguise itself as a pack of cigarettes?" John asked skeptically.

"No, only an object of equal size," the protector answered.

"Well, why doesn't it become a bomb or something to get me?" John inquired.

"It can't form complex machines. Guns and explosives have chemicals, moving parts. It doesn't work that way, but it can form solid metal shapes," the protector explained.

"Like what?" John asked uneasily.

"Basically, knives and stabbing weapons so it's still extremely dangerous because of that," I told him grimly and John looked at me.

"So, because you are similar to that thing, does that mean you also can imitate stuff at your size by touch and create sharp weapons?" John inquired and I looked thoughtful.

"Well, I'm much more advanced than the T-1000 so while I can imitate other people, I can also imitate animals and I can form different sharp weapons as well, not to mention I can split into different units.

So, any stray cat or dog you saw wandering your neighborhood was probably me patrolling the area," I replied and John blinked at that.

"Cool," John said and we continued talking after that.

(3rd POV)

Max kept barking like mad as he continued to pick up an alien smell, a wrong smell, something that agitated him as he tried to warn his masters about the bad smell being in the house.

He saw the source of the wrong smell leaving his master's home as it looked like a man, but the alien smell told him otherwise as the person walked up to his pen.

Max grew even more agitated as he started snarling when the person entered the pen, making Max raise his hackles and he started baring his teeth at the person while his canine brain screamed danger.

There was nothing but terror in his animal brain when the person's finger turned silver and pierced it, making him yelp until he fell to the ground lifelessly as the person ripped the canine's collar off of his neck and examined it.

The person, revealed to be the T-1000, saw that the name on the collar said Max and it realized that it had been tricked so it decided to investigate its target's room to find any information on where he would go next.

The T-1000 dropped the collar and left the dead dog in the pen as it headed back into the house, then it was silent for a little bit until the blood turned into a metallic silver and flowed back into the hole on Max's head that closed up when the dog got up.

The 'dog' was revealed to be a unit split from Adam to keep an eye on John to protect him until the time came for it to return to him, and now its mission was complete so it started following the T-1000 to the mental hospital since it understood that's where Adam, John, and the protector will be heading next.

(Adam's POV)

"See, we spent a lot of time in Nicaragua and places like that, and for a while there, she was with the crazy ex-green beret guy, running guns.

Then there were some other guys so she'd shack up with anybody she could learn from so she could help Adam teach me to be this great military leader.

Adam here didn't exactly approve of that since the guys she was with weren't exactly nice people, but then she got busted and Adam was forced to run.

It's like "Sorry kid, your mom and godfather are psychos. Didn't you know?". It's like everything I've been brought up to believe is all made-up bullshit.

I hated her for that and I suppose I resented Adam a little as well, even though he was always there for me so that part made me guilty since Adam here cared for me and wanted me to feel like I was a regular kid, not some great leader destined to be the savior of the human race.

Now, it turns out that everything they told me was true...they knew, and nobody believed them. not even me. Listen, we got to get her out of there," John told the protector while I listened and I felt sorrow and sympathy since this poor kid had the whole weight of the world on his shoulders.

"Negative, the T-1000's highest probability for success now will be to copy Sarah Connor and wait for you to make contact with her," the protector refused and John frowned.

"Great, so what happens to her?" John inquired.

"Typically, the subject being copied is terminated," the protector replied and John widened his eyes in horror.

"Shit, why didn't you tell me?! We got to go right now!" John exclaimed and went to run but the protector grabbed him by the sleeve.

"Negative, it's not a mission priority," the protector stated and John hit it.

"Yeah?! Well, fuck you! She's a priority to me!" John shouted lividly as I hurried over.

"John, it doesn't understand so calm down," I reasoned while trying to placate him.

"Hey! Goddammit, what's your problem?! Goddammit, help!" John yelled.

"This does not help our mission," the protector said with no emotion on its face, making me shoot an unamused glare.

"You're not helping!" I retorted as John's screams were catching the attention of two guys who were nearby.

"Let me go!" John screamed and the protector let go, making John fall back on his rear and I kneeled to check on him.

"You okay?" I asked and John nodded before looking up at the protector.

"Why the hell did you do that?" John questioned irritably.

"Because you told me to," the protector said and John blinked at that.

"What?" John asked dumbly as he went to stand up.

"I think this thing had also been reprogrammed to follow your orders," I theorized and then John started smiling.

"You have to do what I say, huh?" John inquired, having a look in his eyes that I didn't like.

"That is one of my mission parameters," the protector replied and John nodded.

"Prove it, stand on one foot," John instructed, then the protector lifted one of its feet and stood on one foot just as John requested, making him do a fist pump while looking excited.

"Cool, my own Terminator," John muttered excitedly and I sent him a frown.

"John, don't even think about it because this thing is not meant to be played around with like an action figure," I warned just as those two guys from earlier came walking up to us.

"You okay, kid?" the guy in the yellow muscle shirt asked in concern and John scoffed.

"Take a hike, bozo," John insulted and I sent him a reproached look.

"John!" I hissed before looking at the two guys and saying, "I'm so sorry about him, I'm his uncle and he was just having a disagreement with a friend of mine."

"You heard him, it was just a misunderstanding so let's get out of here, man," the other guy said but the man in the yellow shirt glowered at John.

"Fuck you, you little dipshit," the man spat at John, making me throw my hands up in exasperation as John smiled smugly.

"Dipshit? Did you call moi a dipshit? Grab this guy, he called me a dipshit," John ordered and the protector walked over to pick the man up by the hair as he screamed in pain.

"Jesus, John!" I shouted as the man was yelling at his friend to help him, making the other guy try to get the protector to let go.

"Now who's the dipshit, you jock douchebag?" John mocked and I sent him a glare so he was going to hear it from me later.

The other guy frantically tried to get the protector to let go of his friend but to no avail and then went to try and restrain the protector, causing it to let go of the man before breaking the other guy's hand and throwing him onto the hood of a car and pulling out a Colt Series 70/Detonics 1911 Hybrid to shoot him.

"No!" John screamed in horror as he and I went to knock the gun away as it went off near the other guy.

"Put the gun down now!" John frantically ordered the protector, who did what he said and I quickly looked at the two guys.

"Go on, get out of here!" I shouted urgently and the two guys took off after that before John picked up the gun.

"Jesus, you were going to kill that guy," John said shakingly.

"Of course, I'm a Terminator," the protector stated and I grabbed John by the arm before making him walk a few feet away until I took the gun and kneeled in front of him.

"John, you cannot ever do that again, understand? That thing is not a toy, it is a machine designed to kill people so promise me that you won't do that again," I said sternly and John nodded.

"I promise, I think I now understand why you and Mom told me just how dangerous Terminators are," John replied and I stood up.

"Good, you must understand so that another incident like what just happened never happens again," I empathized before we walked over to the protector.

"Listen to me very carefully, okay? You're not a Terminator anymore, alright? You got that? You just can't go around killing people," John stated.

"Why?" the protector asked blankly.

"What do you mean why? 'Cause you can't," John said.

"Why?" the protector questioned and I looked at John.

"John, it doesn't understand the moralities of taking a human life. It's like trying to explain to a caveman how fire works," I pointed out and John sighed before staring at the protector.

"Okay, you just can't kill people, trust me on this. Look, Adam and I are going to go get my mom, and I order you to help us," John ordered as he gestured for me to hand over the gun.

I held out the gun to the protector barrel first and it took the gun before stuffing it in the front of its pants, then we headed to our bikes before getting on and starting them, driving out of the back lot and making our way to the mental hospital after that.

Chapter Text

We drove for a little bit through the city streets while it was quiet between us since I was busy keeping my eyes open for the T-1000, though it didn't take long for John to have us pull to a stop near the gate that led to the mental hospital.

"Why do we stop now?" the protector inquired.

"Now, you gotta promise me you're not going to kill anyone, right?" John requested.

"Right," the protector replied.

"Swear?" John asked and the protector looked back.

"What?" the protector questioned.

"Just put up your hand and say "I swear I won't kill anyone"," John clarified as he put up his right hand and instructed the machine what to do, causing it to put its right hand up.

"I swear I will not kill anyone," the protector repeated until I sighed.

"Alright, let's do this," I said when we drove up to the front gate, just as the security guard manning the booth got out while the protector got off its bike.

"Visiting hours are 10:00 to 4:00, Monday through Friday," the security guard told us while sounding bored until the protector pulled out the 1911 Hybrid and the guard frantically reached for his sidearm, only to get shot in both knees and screamed as he fell to the ground like a sack of potatoes.

"What the hell are you doing?!" John exclaimed in disbelief as he hopped off the bike and I got off mine as I tensely eyed the protector.

"You son of a bitch, you shot me!" the guard cried out in pain as the protector smashed the glass on the booth and reached in to hit the button that opens the gate, just before taking two mags from the guard's duty belt and walking back over to us.

"He'll live," the protector said coldly and I looked at John.

"To be fair, you didn't tell him to not maim or cripple people either," I pointed out before we got back on our bikes.

We drove in and made our way to the underground parking garage, heading in and parking near the elevators until we got off the bikes with the protector taking the Winchester.

I pulled out the 870 from my mass when we took the elevator to the floor where Sarah was being held and stopped on the floor until the protector stepped out first and a horrified gasp broke out near us in the hallway.

"No! No!" Sarah screamed in terror as I recognized her voice with footsteps frantically retreating.

"Mom, wait!" John called out as we quickly left the elevator.

We hurried after her and moved around the corner to see Sarah running for dear life when an orderly darted out from a hallway to tackle her to the ground.

Sarah frantically tried to get away with more orderlies and a female security guard running over to pin her down as she screamed that the protector would kill them all until I saw Silberman hurrying over with a syringe that no doubt had a sedative in it.

"Help her!" John told me and the protector when I nodded.

"Wait here," the protector said as he made John stay back.

The protector and I walked over but Sarah didn't seem to recognize me since she was in fight-or-flight mode at the moment when I grabbed one orderly with one hand and threw him aside.

The protector threw one orderly into a barred window and another through the glass on a door until the female guard went to whack the protector across the face, breaking its sunglasses as its head snapped to the side.

It looked back and pushed the guard to the floor as I saw Silberman looking shocked to see me here and a little scared of the sight of the protector, who no doubt looks like the infiltrator that attacked the police station back in 1984 as I kneeled next to Sarah.

"Sarah, are you okay?" I inquired but Sarah didn't appear to be listening as she was gazing up at the protector with pure terror in her eyes while John ran over to check on her, just as the protector removed its sunglasses and dropped them.

"Mom, are you okay? Mom!" John questioned, shouting the last part to get her attention and she quickly looked at me and John with wild frightened eyes before looking back up at the protector, who held out a hand.

"Come with us if you want to live," the protector offered but Sarah didn't take it as she still looked terrified.

"It's okay, Sarah. He's with us," I assured her before Sarah went to take the protector's hand, and she was pulled up to her feet.

I heard footsteps and looked to see the T-1000 walking up to a cell door at the end of the hallway up ahead and it paused while the others looked when the T-1000 started walking through the bars, phasing through them to reach the other side as Silberman and Sarah gawked in disbelief until the protector and I aimed our weapons at it.

"Go," the protector ordered.

Sarah and John started running to the elevators as the protector fired a shot to stumble the T-1000 and I fired a shot to knock it back, then we pumped or cocked our weapons and turned around to start running with the T-1000 pursuing us.

It fired its Beretta with bullets impacting me and the protector but they didn't have any effect on us as we ducked into the elevator just as the doors closed, then a blade slid through the middle of the doors.

Sarah and John gasped until the blade morphed into two hooks that pried the doors open, revealing the T-1000 when the protector blasted its head in two, and the T-1000 let out a metallic squeal as it stumbled back when the doors closed and we started descending to the parking garage.

"Jesus, that thing is like you, Adam," Sarah said in alarm as the protector cocked its shotgun.

"Yeah, but don't relax just yet since that won't stop it," I stated just as there was a thud above up, then a blade came right through the ceiling and I fired up at the threat.

"Get down," the protector instructed, making Sarah and John get low to the ground while I racked the pump on my shotgun.

The blade pierced through the ceiling again and the protector fired while another blade came through the ceiling and I fired also, then Sarah went to get the protector's handgun and she fired up at the ceiling as she, the protector, and I kept shooting to deter the T-1000 until a blade cut Sarah across the back of her right shoulder and she fell.

"Mom!" John shouted as the protector and I reloaded until John handed her a mag for the handgun and she reloaded.

She went right back to firing as the protector and I blasted the ceiling when I noticed the doors opening and signaled the others to move, so we ran out as we saw a patrol car manned by a male security guard and he braked to a stop when Sarah ran up to aim at him.

"Out of the car!" Sarah ordered harshly and fired a shot at the windshield, making the guard duck and quickly raise his hands.

"Right now!" Sarah added with an unhinged look so the guard timidly got out of the car, just before the protector threw him into a pillar.

As we were about to get into the car, I heard the sounds of paws moving through the parking garage when a familiar German shepherd came over from behind a pillar and sat down in front of me, then I kneeled before it turned silver and melted until it flowed over to merge into my mass.

After that, the protector and Sarah got in the front while John and I took the back when the T-1000 easily opened the doors while in its genderless silver default form, and then it started running at us.

"Go!" John shouted, prompting the protector to shift the car into reverse and start backing us up as the T-1000 shifted into its male form.

Sarah and I leaned out to fire at the T-1000 as a combination of her bullets and my buckshot made it stumble as silver craters started appearing on its torso until Sarah ran empty and ducked back in.

"I'm out," Sarah informed John, who went to get a fresh mag for her while the protector aimed out to fire.

She was given a fresh mag and she loaded the gun before firing at the T-1000 again, just as the protector's Winchester ran empty and so did my shotgun.

"Reload," the protector said as he and I handed John our shotguns and he started loading them.

I took out my SPAS-12 and unfolded the stock before firing at the T-1000 while we were beginning to back out of the parking garage, the pursuing Skynet model almost looking annoyed by getting shot at multiple times when my SPAS-12 ran empty and I stored it in my mass as Sarah's gun ran empty as well.

"Last one," John told her as he handed her a mag and she loaded her gun, just as I pulled out my P226.

We both fired at the T-1000 as it was still stumbling after us despite each hit and we were warned to hang on by the protector, making me and Sarah duck back into the car just before it bounced and swerved.

We backed up to the gate and swerved 360 degrees until we were now facing the gate and we started speeding to it, smashing through the gate and swerving onto the road on our right.

John handed me and the protector our weapons back and I heard thuds behind us, making me look back to see the T-1000 on the truck with its arms in the shape of hooks again.

"Get down!" I shouted before grabbing John and forcing him down just as the T-1000 swung one of its hooks and smashed the back window while I ducked my head.

"John!" Sarah cried out while she went to pull John out of danger as I got hit when the protector fired its Winchester, knocking it back but it didn't go flying off because of its other hook stabbing the trunk.

"Here, drive," the protector said as it cocked the Winchester and went to lean out the window.

The T-1000 got up and was about to swing again when I blasted the hook keeping it on the car, breaking the metal when the protector fired and the T-1000 was launched off the trunk.

I hit the ground and rolled across it before getting back up and chasing after us, only we were getting too far to catch up as John went to grab the piece of metal stuck to the trunk and threw it onto the road.

I let out a quiet sigh of relief since we had gotten away for now but the T-1000 would catch up to us eventually and we needed to be prepared when it did as we kept driving with the protector shutting off the car lights.

"He's not back there. There's nobody behind us," John informed us as I stored my shotgun in my mass.

"Are you alright?" Sarah inquired and John nodded.

"Yeah," John replied before looking at the protector and asking, "Can you even see anything?"

"I see everything," the protector replied.

"Cool," John muttered when Sarah gestured for him to come over.

"Come here," Sarah said and John went to hug her but then she started patting him down to check if he had been injured or not.

"I said I was okay," John stated when Sarah glared at him.

"John, it was stupid of you to go there. Goddammit, you have to be smarter than that since you almost got yourself killed. What were you thinking?

You cannot risk yourself, even for me. Do you understand? You're too important, understand?" Sarah scolded, making me send her a glare of disapproval for being too harsh as John looked hurt by her words, just as Sarah looked away.

"But, I had to get you out of that place...I'm sorry," John said with his voice cracking a little and Sarah looked at him.

"I didn't need your help. I can take care of myself," Sarah responded coldly, causing John to tear up and I went to pat him on the shoulder comfortingly.

"Sarah, think about it this way, what's the point of him even being the leader of the resistance or even the savior of humanity if he won't even save one life?

Compassion and seeing every human life as sacred is how we win against Skynet, not cold and calculating decisions or we become no better than the machines," I pointed out and Sarah sighed as she looked away.

"What's wrong with your eyes?" the protector asked John as it looked back at him.

"Nothing," John evaded as a few tears had already gone down his cheeks when Sarah went to look at the protector.

"So, what's your story?" Sarah asked warily and the protector went to look at her before starting to explain.

We drove for a while as I kept my eyes open just in case the T-1000 had gotten a vehicle and caught up to us, though we did eventually come across a gas station and decided to stay in the garage for the night.

The protector got out with John and it broke the lock on the garage door before opening it when Sarah drove inside, followed by the protector and John.

After that, we decided to get Sarah's gash taken care of before it could get infected so we found a first-aid kit and the protector started to stitch up Sarah's injury.

"Listen, do you know what you're doing?" John inquired.

"I have detailed files on human anatomy," the protector replied and Sarah scoffed.

"I bet, makes you a more efficient killer, right?" Sarah huffed bitterly.

"Correct," the protector replied as it was busy stitching up Sarah's injury when John and I went to help disinfect and bandage it up.

Once that was done, we got to work on removing the bullets from the protector's body and I concentrated as Sarah and I removed each bullet.

"Does it hurt when you get shot?" John asked the protector.

"I sense injuries and the data could be called pain," the protector answered while Sarah went to remove a bullet.

"John, help us with the light," Sarah requested, prompting John to hold up the light so that we could see what we were doing but I didn't need the light since my scan vision helps me see in the dark.

"So, will these injuries heal up?" I questioned the protector.

"Yes," the protector replied.

"Good, if you can't pass for human, you're not much good to us," Sarah stated.

"How long do you live or I mean last, whatever?" John inquired.

"A hundred and twenty years with my existing power cell," the protector said.

"Can you learn stuff that you haven't been programmed with so you can be...you know, more human, and not such a dork all the time?" John questioned.

"My CPU is a neural net processor, a learning computer. The more contact I have with humans, the more I learn but Skynet presets the switch to read-only when we're sent out alone," the protector explained as Sarah removed another bullet.

"Doesn't want you to do too much thinking, huh?" Sarah asked.

"No," the protector answered and John perked up as an idea seemed to pop up in his mind.

"Can we reset the switch?" John inquired and we all looked at him before I looked thoughtful.

"We could, but it's risky since we could accidentally tamper with his programming and turn him hostile if we're not careful, so we need to do this very carefully," I pointed out logically and John looked at me.

"You're a Terminator now so wouldn't you know how to do it?" John asked and I nodded.

"Yeah, I have detailed files on older Terminator models so I can do it, but I'll need to concentrate so that I don't mess something up," I replied.

With that said, we got everything set up to remove the CPU and reset the switch to make the Terminator capable of learning as we moved the protector to a mirror and I was handed a scalpel, and then I started cutting into a section of the protector's hair and skin before putting the scalpel down.

"Okay, hand me those pliers," I instructed and Sarah handed me pliers before I used them to peel back the section of the protector's head to reveal the sealed opening where the CPU was.

"Alright, I'll need to rotate the two locking cylinders counterclockwise so somebody pass me a drill," I continued and I was handed a drill before I took it, using it to unscrew the locking cylinders until I took another set of pliers to pull open the seal.

I went to open the shock-damping assembly and then I could see the CPU that was inside, so I very carefully reached in with the pliers and pulled out the CPU until the protector stopped moving and John went to snap his fingers in front of its face but it didn't react.

"So, what now?" John asked as Sarah took the CPU and stared at it, looking like she couldn't believe something so small could hold so much data.

"Now I reset the switch but I have to do it very carefully because I do not want to mess up his current programming so I'll need everyone to be quiet while I do it," I replied as I noticed Sarah was gone, then I looked back and saw her about to destroy the CPU with a hammer and John noticed.

"No! No!" John shouted as he and I ran over until he covered the CPU with his hands, forcing Sarah to stop.

"Out of my way, John," Sarah said darkly.

"Don't kill him," John told her with a firm glare.

"It, John, not him. It," Sarah countered coldly.

"Okay, it, but we need it," John reasoned and Sarah sent him an unstable look.

"You listen to me, we're better off on our own," Sarah stated bitterly.

"But he and Adam are the only proof we have, of the future and the war and all that," John pointed out, and Sarah looked at the protector.

"Maybe, but I don't trust it," Sarah admitted and I sighed.

"Sarah, I know you don't trust it and I don't blame you after what we experienced 10 years ago, not to mention I get it since I faced this horror my entire life but John's future self sent it back here because he knows that I might need assistance in dealing with what's currently after us.

If you can't trust it, then trust John since he understands that I might not be enough against the T-1000 so we'll need all the help we can get," I reasoned and John nodded in agreement.

"He's right, if I'm supposed to be this great military leader, then maybe you should trust me and listen to my leadership ideas once in a while.

If my own mother won't, then how do you expect anyone else to?" John questioned as he moved his hands away from the CPU and he and I waited with bated breath as a conflicting look crossed Sarah's face.

She stared down at the CPU and gritted her teeth as her conflicting look changed to frustration and she hit the area next to the CPU, making John flinch until Sarah looked at us.

"Alright, play it your way," Sarah whispered until she tossed the hammer onto the toolbox.

I took the CPU and headed over to the protector before carefully putting the CPU back in, and the protector turned on as I started putting the shock-damping assembly in and sealed it with the port cover.

"Was there a problem?" the protector inquired and John and I shook our heads.

"No, just had to be careful resetting the switch so that I didn't mess with your current programming," I lied before covering the port cover with the protector's skin and hair.

I stitched it up and then we decided to get some rest for tonight so the protector went to take watch while John went to use the backseat of the patrol car as a bed until he was asleep, then Sarah started smoking and I tried to get some sleep soon after.  

Chapter Text

After getting some sleep, we got up and John left with the protector to find a new vehicle as I yawned, doing a weapon's check and loading my shotguns and handgun with fresh ammo until Sarah and I stepped out just as John and the protector pulled up in a station wagon.

"We have to get as far away from the city as possible," the protector stated before Sarah and I got in the backseat.

"Just head South," Sarah told the protector and we drove away from the gas station.

We started making our way down the long stretch of road in the desert as I watched the landscape pass by when we passed by a bus and I looked at the protector.

"Hey, try to follow the traffic laws and keep it under 65 since we don't want to get pulled over before we can get to where we're going," I instructed.

"Affirmative," the protector replied and John looked at him.

"No, no, no, no, no, you got to listen to the way people talk. You don't say "affirmative" or some shit like that. You say, "No problemo".

If someone comes off to you with an attitude, you say "Eat me". And if you want to shine them on, it's "Hasta la vista, baby"," John explained and the protector looked at him.

"Hasta la vista, baby," the protector repeated, and John nodded.

"Yeah, or "Later, dick-wad". And if someone gets upset, you say "Chill out" or you could do combinations," John told him and the protector looked at him again.

"Chill out, dick-wad," the protector said and John smiled.

"That's great! See? You're getting it," John praised.

"No problemo," the protector replied.

We kept driving down the long stretch of road while it was a little silent for a bit until we soon arrived at a gas station that was on the side of the road as the engine started steaming, so we decided to pull over until we came to a stop at the gas pumps.

"You got any cash?" Sarah asked as she looked at me and John.

"I got a couple hundred bucks, so I'll give you half," John remarked as he took out the money and Sarah snatched it out of his hand before counting it, much to his dismay until some of the money was handed back to him.

"Get some food," Sarah told him before getting out of the car.

"Jeez, no sense of humor," John grumbled before the rest of us got out and the protector looked around as we walked.

"Well, she's probably focused on where we're going right now," I replied and John sighed before looking at the protector.

"That's another thing, you can lighten up a bit yourself. This severe routine is getting old, okay? I mean, you're acting like such a geek.

Smile once in a while," John told the protector, who looked down at him.

"Smile?" the protector asked.

"Yeah. You know, smile so watch," John said as he walked over to someone who was manning a window to a fast food restaurant.

"Hi, nice place you got here. How's business?" John asked and the older woman sent him a dirty look.

"Gimme a break," the woman scoffed as I winced and John turned to look at the protector sheepishly.

"Okay, bad example," John said as he was looking around while I noticed one guy at a payphone, talking to someone on it with a smile and I tapped John on the shoulder to get his attention.

"What about him?" I questioned as I pointed at the guy and John nodded before he looked at the protector.

"See that guy over there, that's a smile," John said and the protector looked at the guy, appearing to analyze his smile when he looked back at us and struggled to show a smile and managed it, only it looked pained than a genuine one and John and I shared a grimace.

"Uh, it's a work in progress but we'll get there so not bad for your first attempt," I said while trying not to sound like an ass about it until the protector stopped smiling and went back to his emotionless expression.

After that, we went to get some food and paid for that until we started eating and waited while the protector went to fix the engine until John went to offer Sarah his fries.

Sarah didn't even acknowledge him and John looked hurt by that and got out of the car, making me sigh since I needed to talk to Sarah later and get her to at least treat him like a human being but I got out as well and walked over to the protector.

"Need any help?" John asked as the protector was busy with the engine.

"No," the protector replied just as two kids ran past us with toy Berettas and started arguing about who won while play fighting.

"We're not going to make it, are we? People, I mean," John wondered as I gazed at the kids, my eyes soft and full of sympathy since they had no idea what would await them not long from now.

"It's in your nature to destroy yourselves," the protector pointed out.

"Yeah... major drag, huh?" John muttered and I looked at him.

"I don't know, humanity does have redeemable traits such as looking after the environment, caring for others, and coming together during a major crisis.

The human race may be flawed, but it's not too far gone to where it can't be saved," I said while we saw the two kids' mother breaking up their fight.

"I need to know how Skynet gets built. Who's responsible?" Sarah asked the protector, who looked at her.

"The man most directly responsible is Miles Bennett Dyson," the protector replied as it closed the hood of the station wagon.

"Who is that?" Sarah questioned while we went to get back into the car.

"He's the director of special projects at Cyberdyne Systems Corporation," the protector answered as we got into the car and the protector started the engine.

"So, why him?" I asked curiously.

"In a few months, he creates a revolutionary type of microprocessor," the protector said as we started driving.

"Go on, then what?" Sarah urged.

"In three years, Cyberdyne will become the largest supplier of military computer systems. All stealth bombers are upgraded with Cyberdyne computers, becoming fully unmanned.

Afterward, they flew with a perfect operational record, the Skynet funding bill was passed, and the system went online on August 4, 1997.

Human decisions are removed from strategic defense, Skynet begins to learn at a geometric rate, and then it becomes self-aware at 2:14 AM, Eastern time, August 29th.

In a panic, they try to pull the plug," the protector explained.

"Skynet fights back," Sarah added.

"Yes, it launches its missiles against the targets in Russia," the protector replied.

"Why attack Russia? Aren't they our friends now?" John questioned in confusion.

"Because Skynet knows that the Russian counterattack will eliminate its enemies over here," the protector answered and I started looking grim.

"Yeah, and as a result, three billion people lost their lives either as a result of the blasts or the lethal exposure to radiation fallout and complete anarchy that broke out in the aftermath," I spoke up bitterly.

"Jesus, how much do you know about Dyson?" Sarah asked the protector, who looked at her.

"I have detailed files," the protector replied and Sarah nodded.

"I want to know everything, what he looks like, where he lives, everything," Sarah demanded and the protector started explaining all of it to her.

As that happened, I started feeling a little uneasy since the only reason why she would want to know that is if she might be planning to kill him later and I had seen the movie, so it was a good chance that that was her reason for wanting to know everything about him as we kept driving.

Sarah and I gave the protector directions to a friend's place that we hadn't visited in a while, not since Sarah had gotten arrested so we soon arrived at Enrique's home that was located a few miles off the road until we came to a stop.

I took out my P226 and held it in my hand as Sarah walked forward with her hand on the 1911 Hybrid while the protector had his Winchester out, though the place seemed empty and I hoped that Enrique and his family hadn't packed up and left since we were screwed if they did.

"Enrique, estas aqui?!" Sarah called out as she looked around when Enrique popped out from behind his trailer with a Mossberg 590, racking the pump and aiming at us before Sarah, the protector, and I quickly trained our weapons on him.

Enrique paused when he got a good look at me and Sarah before he slowly aimed the shotgun away and held it up to show that he wasn't being a threat at the moment as he smirked.

"You and Sullivan are pretty jumpy, Connor," Enrique remarked before I held up a hand at the protector in a signal to hold fire until Sarah started speaking to Enrique in Spanish, then Enrique chuckled and went to hug Sarah after she put away her gun.

"Enrique, good to see you, hermano," I greeted as I walked up and Enrique shook my hand as we chatted in Spanish until he called out for his relatives to come out of hiding and to break out the tequila as John came out of the car and Enrique saw him.

"Hey, Big John," Enrique said with a big smile and John perked up.

"What's up?" John remarked before Enrique saw the protector and looked confused.

"(Who's the big guy?)" Enrique inquired in Spanish and I looked at him.

"Don't worry, he's with us," I assured him and John nodded.

"Yeah, he's...uh...Uncle Bob. Uncle Bob, this is Enrique," John said and I tried to hide my amusement at what the protector was named.

"Uncle Bob, huh? Okay," Enrique said before chuckling as his other relatives and family went to greet us as I shook hands or hugged while making sure to stuff my gun in the back of my pants.

Enrique offered the protector a drink, only the machine didn't react and Enrique handed the tequila bottle to Sarah, who took a sip from it and passed it to me.

"Uncle Bob?" the protector questioned in what appeared to be confusion as I took a sip and handed the bottle back to Enrique, and John shrugged while I held back a snicker.

"Hey, Sarita, you are pretty famous, you know? All over the goddamn TV, pictures of you, Adam, John, your big friend here.

Cops are going nuts looking for you," Enrique told Sarah while chuckling as I noticed the protector holding up a baby and inspecting the child before putting the baby down.

"We just came here to get our stuff and will be out of your hair since we don't you and your family getting into trouble because of us.

So, we'll need clothes, food, and one of your trucks," I said and Enrique blinked at that.

"No fillings from my fucking teeth?" Enrique questioned with a frown.

"Now, Enrique. You three, you're on weapons detail," Sarah told me, John, and the protector until I nodded and looked at John and the protector.

"Come on, let's go," I said before the three of us started heading to a secret hatch that was buried in the ground until the protector grabbed the chains connected to the hatch before pulling them to reveal an underground armory that had assault rifles, shotguns, machineguns, and weapons like a Mac 10 or grenade launchers in it.

"One thing about my mom and Adam, they always plan ahead," John told the protector while pulling a sheet down to reveal three M60s on a gunrack, so I took one and started doing a weapon check.

"Yeah, better to be prepared for the worst-case scenario," I commented while inspecting the machine gun and racking the charging handle a few times as the protector went to pick up an M79 grenade launcher and went to inspect it.

"Excellent," the protector said and I smirked.

"Shit, you want to do a lot of damage against the T-1000, that weapon would definitely do the job," I remarked just as John went to inspect a few weapons while we started loading them and the ammo boxes out of the weapon stash.

"See, I grew up in places like this, but Adam here got me toys and things like Nintendo to play with so it kept me busy when he and Mom weren't training me.

Aside from that, I rode around in helicopters and learned how to blow shit up but when my mom got busted and Adam laid low while watching me from a distance, I got put into a regular school.

But, Adam taught me a bit about math and stuff so what the teachers were teaching me is something I'm familiar with," John explained while inspecting an AKM and I looked at him.

"Well, I had to give you some form of education since it's really important," I said as the protector took a High Standard Model K-1200 Riot Standard as John sent me a nod while going to get a box.

"Are you ever afraid?" John asked the protector.

"No," the protector replied and John looked at him.

"Not even of dying?" John questioned.

"Nope," the protector answered as he went to take an ammo box.

"You don't feel any emotion about it, one way or another?" John inquired.

"No, I have to stay functional until my mission is complete, so it doesn't matter," the protector told him while John looked disheartened to hear that and I sighed.

"Yeah, that's something I know about you guys all too well," I spoke up as the protector went to pull off a sheet to reveal a Handheld M134 Minigun before he picked it up and went to look at us with a smirk that looked more human while John grinned and I smiled.

"That's definitely you," John stated as we went to get our chosen hardware out of the hatch and moved a few weapons on a table until Sarah went to do a weapon check on a Colt 'Commando' CAR-15 while smoking a cigarette, now wearing black clothing with sunglasses and combat boots.

I assisted her in checking to see if the weapons were in good condition to use against the T-1000 while John and the protector were busy fixing up the truck Enrique let us have.

Sarah and I kept checking the weapons, making sure the sights were good, the chambers were clean, and that they were in good condition so that they wouldn't jam.

Suddenly, the truck started and Sarah and I looked to see John doing a high-five with the protector while teaching him how to do it, and I smiled slightly while watching him bond with something that I had fought against for months in the future.

It was a sight I would never forget since John did see the protector as a father figure, which was heartwarming and took my mind off of what would happen one day, just merely watching until I noticed that Sarah had rested her head on the table and fell asleep after carving "No Fate" on it.

"Try to rest easy, Sarah. You more than deserve it," I muttered before I went to keep doing a weapon check for a little bit and then I started loading the weapons and ammo into the back of the truck with John and the protector.

Chapter Text

"Okay, that should be all of it," I said as I finished helping John and the protector load up the last of the weapons and ammo in the back of the truck.

I shut the tailgate just as I caught Sarah leaving the nearby trailer home with a Car-15 rifle that was equipped with a scope and laser sight, heading to the station wagon as she also had on a black hat to go with her dark tactical outfit until she went to get into the car.

"She said go South with him like you planned, so she'll meet you tomorrow," Enrique told me and John until I started hurrying to the car with John right behind me.

"Sarah, wait!" I shouted just as Sarah drove away until she was gone and I swore under my breath.

"Why did she leave?" John wondered and I glanced at him.

"I don't know, but I have a bad feeling about this," I said so I gestured for John to follow me and we went over to the table Sarah had been resting at with the protector joining us before John pulled the knife off the table.

"No fate? No fate but what we make...my father told her this. I made him memorize it up in the future as a message to her... never mind.

Now, okay, the whole thing goes, the future's not set and there's no fate but what we make for ourselves," John told the protector as I started feeling uneasy.

"She intends to change the future," the protector said and John shrugged.

"Yeah, I guess," John replied and I started looking alarmed.

"John, she wants to change the future by stopping Skynet from even being created, so how will she intend to do that?" I questioned and John's eyes widened.

"Oh shit!" John exclaimed.

"Dyson," the protector stated and John nodded.

"Yeah, got to be...Miles Dyson, she's going to blow him away!" John shouted in horror and I immediately started hurrying to the truck.

"We need to go, now," I said urgently, prompting John to run over as I got in the truck.

John also got in and so did the protector before I started the truck and we sped after Sarah, just as the sun was setting and it turned into night pretty soon.

"This is tactically dangerous," the protector pointed out and I nodded.

"I know, but we need to stop Sarah before she crosses a line she can't ever come back from," I stated with a hard expression.

"The T-1000 has the same files that you and I do, so it knows what I know, and it might anticipate this move," the protector told me while John sent him a firm glare.

"I don't care so you heard Adam, we got to stop her," John argued and the protector looked at him.

"Killing Dyson might actually prevent the war," the protector pointed out and I sighed as John sent him a frustrated look.

"I don't care, so haven't you learned anything yet?! Haven't you figured out why you can't kill people?!" John shouted and the protector looked at him stoically.

"I want to stop Skynet, but not at the cost of our humanity because the second we cross that line, we become no better than it, and then Skynet wins," I said grimly while keeping my eyes on the road.

I used my internal mapping systems to follow the directions to Dyson's house as we started heading into civilization when I could see that we were getting close until we soon arrived at the Dyson residence.

I quickly got out with John and the protector following suit, running up to the house as I saw signs that Miles' office had taken fire while we ran up to the front door.

"Shit, we're too late!" John yelled just as the protector forced the door open, then we ran inside until I saw Sarah huddled up nearby while trembling as Miles was shot while his wife and son were next to him.

"Oh my god," I said with a look of shock before John and I ran over to Sarah and kneeled in front of her.

"Check them," John ordered and the protector went to check on Miles and his family while I removed Sarah's hat from her head.

"Sarah, are you hurt?" I asked gently as John and I gazed at the woman before us, who was crying at the knowledge that she almost killed a man in cold blood.

"I almost...I almost...hold me," Sarah begged before John and I pulled her into a hug, which she returned as she resumed sobbing.

This woman has been through hell, and has the whole world on her shoulders, yet was still able to regain enough of her humanity to stop herself from doing the unthinkable so I respected her for that since it wasn't easy coming back from such a dark place.

"It'll be okay...we'll figure something out, okay? I promise," John told her while his voice was a little shaky from seeing his mother looking so vulnerable.

"You and Adam came here to stop me?" Sarah questioned and I nodded.

"We had to... John and I want to stop Skynet just as much as you do, but there are lines we cannot cross or we're no better than the very thing we're fighting against," I stated solemnly and Sarah looked at John with guilt and regret in her eyes.

"I love you, John. I always have," Sarah whimpered and John nodded.

"I know," John said quietly before I let them hug each other as I went to go see how the protector's progress was in checking Miles.

"How's he doing?" I asked the protector, who lifted Miles to check his bullet wound.

"Deep penetration, no shattered bone," the protector informed me while having Miles' wife put pressure on the wound.

"Good, and I can see that the bullet hadn't hit anything vital either while the injury is a through and through, so all we need is to disinfect, stitch up, and bandage the wound," I said as John met up with me and the protector.

"W-Who are you people?" Miles whimpered in pain so I looked at John.

"You want me to show them or have him do it instead?" I asked while motioning my head at the protector, then John took out a switchblade and opened it.

"Better if it's both of you," John replied and I nodded.

"Okay, see if you can take Mr. Dyson's son somewhere so that he doesn't see this," I instructed as John handed the protector the switchblade.

He took Miles' son Danny somewhere else as the protector removed his leather jacket and held up his arm before he started using the switchblade to slice into his flesh, much to Miles and Tarissa's horror as he cut enough of his skin to remove it to reveal the metal arm that lurked inside.

As for me I stepped forward and turned my body into a metallic silver as Miles and Tarissa looked even more horrified to see something that shouldn't even exist as they shuddered and trembled in terror.

"Oh my god," Miles gasped in shock and disbelief when I changed back to normal and the protector held his metal hand up.

"Now, listen to us very carefully," the protector instructed as Miles and Tarissa gawked up at us.

After that, we patched up Miles' bullet wound and had him and Tarissa take a seat at the kitchen table as Sarah recovered enough to stand up and she started smoking before the protector and I began to explain.

Miles listened while the protector and I told him everything, Skynet, Judgment Day, and the dark years that followed as I also gave him my accounts of the horrors of the future, how I was born after Judgment Day as a former human, and grew up in the ruins with other survivors while Skynet hunted us like animals.

I told him about what I'd witnessed, my time in the resistance, and how I was captured before having my consciousness transferred into the TX-H and using the TDE to arrive in 1984.

Miles took it as well as expected and it's no surprise since it's not every day that you find out that you're responsible for three billion deaths and the devastation of the entire planet.

"I feel like I'm going to throw up," Miles admitted as he looked ill and shaken up before he looked at us.

"You're judging me on things I haven't even done yet, so how were we supposed to know?" Miles added and Sarah huffed.

"Yeah, right...how were you supposed to know? Fucking men like you built the hydrogen bomb...men like you thought it up so you think you're so creative but you don't know what it's like to really create something, to create a life, to feel it growing inside you.

All you know how to create is death and destruction," Sarah scoffed bitterly.

"Mom!" John admonished and I glanced at Sarah.

"Sarah, you ever hear the saying that the path to hell is paved with good intentions? Give him a break, he thought he was doing something good for humanity.

Besides, no one can predict something like this, how something they created could turn on them and carry out a path of genocide.

Still, we need to stop this from happening so that all of those people don't die," I reasoned while Tarissa looked at us.

"But I thought...aren't we changing things right now, changing the way it goes?" Tarissa questioned and Miles nodded.

"That's right, there's no way I'm going to finish the new processor, not now. Forget it, so I'll quit Cyberdyne tomorrow," Miles declared.

"That's not good enough," Sarah spoke up and I nodded in agreement.

"No one must follow your work," the protector added.

"He's right, even if you were to quit, someone else will just continue what you started so we need to make sure to leave no trace of your work," I stated and Miles nodded.

"Right, then we have to destroy all the stuff at the lab, the files, the disk drives, everything...the chip, do you know about the chip?" Miles asked and that got our attention.

"What chip?" Sarah inquired.

"They keep it in the vault at Cyberdyne, so it must be from the other one like you and Adam," Miles told the protector and my breath hitched as I realized what he was talking about.

"The CPU from the first Terminator," the protector confirmed and I rubbed my eyes while Sarah scowled.

"Son of a bitch, I knew it," Sarah growled angrily as she started pacing.

"They told us not to ask where they got it," Miles said as I rubbed the back of my neck.

"I should've made sure that goddamn thing was completely destroyed so that it couldn't be salvaged...god, I'm so fucking stupid for not doing that," I muttered.

"It was scary stuff, radically advanced but it didn't work since it was smashed, though it gave us ideas, took us in new directions.

I mean, things we would have never thought...all my work was based on it," Miles explained.

"It must be destroyed," the protector stated and Miles nodded.

"Can you get us in past security?" Sarah asked.

"I think so, yeah...when?" Miles inquired and the protector stood up from his seat as Miles started looking taken aback.

"Now?" Miles questioned and I nodded.

"Yeah, we need to do this now while we still have time," I replied, and with that said, we went to get ready after that.

Later on, we were driving to Cyberdyne Systems as I was mostly lost in thought about how I knew what was going to happen and hoped my knowledge would still be useful since there were already changes because of my showing up in this universe.

Still, I kept it in mind as we pulled up near our destination and got out of the truck, taking a few things from the back as Sarah put on Kyle's coat and I made sure to grab the duffle bag that had the M60 and an ammo box for the machine gun.

Once we were done getting what we needed, we started walking to the front door and crossed the empty parking lot to get there, then we placed our stuff near the door and headed inside the lobby before approaching the front desk that was manned by the security guard Gibbons.

"Hi, uh...Carl, right? Uh, friends from out of town so I just thought I'd take them upstairs and show them around," Miles greeted with a slightly nervous smile as he gestured at the rest of us.

"Mr. Dyson, now you know the rules, concerning visitors in the lab. I need written authorization-" Gibbons said and was cut off from finishing his sentence when the protector pulled out his 1911 Hybrid, Sarah pulled out her Detonics Speedmaster, and I pulled out a MAC-10 until the three of us aimed at him.

"I insist," the protector said and Gibbons went to reach for the silent alarm.

"Don't even think about it," Sarah warned and Gibbons slowly raised his hands in surrender as we moved around the desk before Sarah went to pull out Gibbons' Taurus PT99AFS from its holster.

The protector forced Gibbons to stand when we took him into the men's restroom that was nearby until we used his cuffs to chain him to the pipe under one of the urinals and duck-taped his mouth so that he couldn't call for help.

We got our stuff outside, went to take the elevator after that, and I did a weapon check with my MAC-10 just in case as we ascended to where we needed to go until we arrived on the floor we were looking for and Miles confirmed it was clear.

"It takes two keys to open the vault and they have to be turned simultaneously, so the other one's in a locker at the security station," Miles told us as we headed down the hall to the security station.

I knew it wouldn't be that easy and I was proven right as we entered the security station and walked over to the locker before Miles used his keycard to open it, only to be denied access.

"My card should access this thing," Miles told us in confusion and tried to use his keycard two more times until he grabbed the handle on the locker and yanked at it.

"What? What is it?" Sarah questioned and Miles checked one of the screens.

"Dammit, the silent alarm's been tripped so it's neutralized all the codes in the entire building, which means nothing will open anywhere now.

We have to abort," Miles said with a frantic look and I quickly walked over to put a hand on his shoulder.

"Miles, breathe...listen, I know you feel like panicking right now but we can still do this, okay?" I reassured him and Miles nodded as he was sweating a little.

"You guys get started on the lab, I can open this," John told us and I nodded, just before the rest of us headed to the door leading to the lab.

"My personal entry code for the lab may still work," Miles said to me and Sarah as he went to try to unlock the door, only he was denied entry again and he looked back at us.

"It's no good," Miles informed us.

"Let me try mine," the protector spoke up and we looked to see him taking out his grenade launcher and my eyes widened as he went to start loading a grenade.

"John, fire in the hole!" Sarah shouted as the three of us ran to get some distance before we ducked behind a wall to use as cover.

The next thing I heard was the grenade launcher being fired and an explosion erupted, then the fire alarm went off and we moved out of cover as the protector went through the hole with flames being extinguished as I went in after him.

I couldn't hear what Miles was yelling but I knew that the halon fire suppression system had been set off by the fire, though the gas didn't affect me since I wasn't organic anymore. Still, I met up with the protector as he found two gas masks and handed me one until we headed back to the others.

"Here, put this on," I said before the protector and I handed Sarah and Miles the masks.

They went to put them on before we went to bring our stuff into the lab while going to set up explosive charges around the lab, using flammable barrels with claymore mines as we started rigging them with detonators.

"How are we doing?" Sarah asked while setting up one barrel.

"Primer cord is set. One more barrel, two more minutes," the protector replied.

"How do we, uh...how do we set them off?" Miles inquired while gesturing at the barrels, just as the protector got the remote detonator ready.

"Remote control," the protector answered as he handed Miles the detonator and clicked his tongue while doing a human gesture of pushing a button with his thumb, just as John came running into the lab.

"Hey, you get into that locker?" I asked and John held up the other key to the vault.

"Piece of cake, though we got company," John informed us.

"Police?" Miles questioned and John nodded.

"How many?" Sarah questioned as she was finishing up with her barrel.

"All of them, I think," John replied.

"Then we need to get out of here since it won't be long until they send in a SWAT team after us," I stated.

"Go, I'll finish here," Sarah told us so I went to get the M60 and load it before racking the charging handle, just as the protector started to leave.

"I'll take care of the police," the protector said and John's eyes widened at that.

"Hey, wait, you swore!" John shouted and the protector sent him a reassuring smile.

"Trust me," the protector told him until he walked away and I followed him.

We went down the hallway and he wasn't bothered by my joining him during our walk to an office section of the building that had the lights off, though I could hear the sound of the police helicopter hovering around with the spotlight shining in until we walked over to a desk and the protector kicked it through a window, then we walked up to the opening as the spotlight shined on us.

"You two in the window, drop your weapons and place your hands on top of your heads," an officer ordered on a megaphone.

In response, the protector fired his minigun and I fired my M60 down at the police cars, making the officers and SWAT officers scatter to flee so that they didn't get shot.

That wasn't our intention so we fired at the police cars to disable them while also firing at the ground around the officers to make them run until they scrambled into cover and our weapons became empty soon after.

We dropped our weapons and the protector got his grenade launcher before blowing up a couple of police cars, then my targeting systems started scanning until the results showed that there were no casualties. 

The protector and I turned around and went to leave just as the officers returned fire, but we kept walking away and left the room as we went to meet back up with the others.

"Time to go, now," the protector said once we arrived back in the lab and Sarah handed John one of the gas masks.

"Take this, they'll use gas," Sarah said as John took the mask and Sarah looked at Miles.

"Miles, hand me the detonator," Sarah told him and Miles carefully picked up the detonator before going to follow us out of the lab, just as the door opposite of us was kicked open and we spun around to see a SWAT team charge in.

"Get down!" I shouted as Sarah and I dove behind a desk to use for cover but it was too late, the officers opened fire.

I heard Miles let out shouts of pain as he got hit a few times while John called out to me and Sarah, though the two of us each took out the Speedmaster and the MAC-10 to get them ready.

The shooting stopped momentarily and that made me and Sarah fire at the ceiling to deter them, making them return fire as we quickly crawled away, and then we ran into a lab before diving into cover, though the only exit was too far away.

I had to improvise so I grabbed Sarah and ran to the wall opposite of us before I used most of my body to smash through it to reach the others until the protector aimed his grenade launcher at the door to the hallway.

"Get down!" Sarah shouted before we took cover and the protector blasted an opening to the hallway.

We ran through it and hurried to the elevator before ducking inside and starting our descent to the lobby, though everything started rocking as John and Sarah grabbed onto the safety bars but the shaking stopped and we arrived at the lobby.

The second the doors opened, we walked out and saw SWAT waiting for us in the lobby up ahead until they shot a CS grenade into the hall and the gas started exiting the canister so Sarah took out the remaining gas mask to share it with John before I looked back.

"Stay here, we'll be right back," I told them until the protector and I started walking down the hall and made our way to the lobby.

"Get down on the floor, face down!" the SWAT team leader ordered but the protector and I kept walking.

"Down on the floor, now!" the team leader demanded but we kept approaching until he gave to order to fire.

The SWAT officers opened fire and bullets impacted us but didn't do any real damage, though bits of the protector's skin on his face started getting torn off, exposing parts of his metal skull as he pulled out his 1911 Hybrid and I pulled out my P226.

Once we got close enough, we started shooting SWAT officers in the legs as screams of pain erupted from the ones we shot while they collapsed until only two were left while our weapons ran empty.

We put our handguns away as the two remaining SWAT officers shot at us with Berettas but it didn't affect us as the protector picked up an MM1 grenade launcher to aim at the officers, then one of them got hit in the chest by a canister and the last officer attempted to run, only to get shot in the back by the protector.

The protector and I went to leave the building where dozens of officers were waiting for us when the protector fired CS grenades all over the police blockade, which soon started to incapacitate the officers who weren't wearing gas masks as we walked into the blockade.

We passed officers rolling around on the ground coughing and hacking as we headed to a SWAT van before I walked up to a SWAT officer and removed his gas mask while the protector went over to the second officer and handed him the MM1 grenade launcher.

"Here, hold this," the protector said as he put the grenade launcher into the officer's arms.

He then removed the officer's mask before we got into the van and the protector was about to hotwire the van, only he searched and found the keys so he started the van and drove us to the entrance before we smashed through the glass doors as the injured SWAT officers managed to get out of the way in time, then we swerved until the back doors were facing the hall.

"Get in!" I called out to John and Sarah, who soon got into the back.

"Go!" Sarah shouted and the protector quickly drove the van out of the building as we started taking fire again, and even though we managed to get away from the building and went onto the highway, I knew it wouldn't be over yet so I kept an eye out after that.   

Chapter Text

"Okay, we should be clear for now," I said after looking out the window and not seeing anything, then I went to go check on Sarah and John as the former was busy covering him with tactical vests.

"Listen, no matter what happens, you stay under these vests, got it?" Sarah instructed and John nodded.

"Yeah," John replied before Sarah kissed him on the cheek and covered his head with a vest as I grabbed a couple more vests.

We went over to one of the backdoor windows and started covering it up with the vests while I made sure to keep my eyes open as I glanced through the open doorway from time to time until the police helicopter from before showed up with its searchlight shining down on us.

"Hey, we got a chopper coming in!" I alerted the protector, who looked back.

"It's him," the protector said, and I scowled since I knew who he was talking about.

"Son of a bitch, this bastard doesn't know when to stop," I muttered irritably.

I took out my rifle from my mass and got ready to use it while Sarah took two CAR-15 rifles and went to load them up as I saw the helicopter lowering until it was close behind us.

We popped out of cover and opened fire at the helicopter, prompting the T-1000 to shoot back with an MP5K, and that made Sarah duck back into cover.

Bullets impacted the armored door while I kept shooting at the helicopter, bullets hitting me but sparks erupted as I was struck by the rounds as I wasn't affected by the gunfire.

Sarah popped back out and returned fire as she alternated between shooting back and ducking into cover while the T-1000 pursued us, then I noticed John moving the vest covering his head to see what was happening as Sarah and I traded gunfire with the T-1000, making him quickly cover his head with the vest that started getting hit by bullets.

"John, stay down!" Sarah shouted before she continued shooting at the helicopter.

The protector swerved the van to avoid cars that were on the highway which was getting busier the more we kept driving, passing by a semi with a tanker trailer at one point that blared its horn at us when I was forced to reload once my rifle ran empty, then Sarah got shot in the leg and she let out a shout of pain.

"Mom!" John yelled as my eyes widened in horror and I hurried over to check her leg.

The protector suddenly slammed on the brakes and it made me and Sarah slide over to the cab of the van as I was thrown to the floor, just before the helicopter smashed right into the back of the van.

The helicopter exploded and the protector hit the gas as the wreckage of the helicopter crashed into the road, then the van suddenly rocked before the protector swerved.

The van started tipping and it went onto its side as we were thrown around when we stopped moving, then I got up and hurried over to Sarah just as somebody outside called out to us.

"Hey, let's get you up since I doubt that would've stopped it," I said just as I gestured for John to come and help me, then we went to grab Sarah's arms and carefully lifted her up before helping her out of the van while the protector took point.

"Take the shotgun," Sarah said and John grabbed a Remington 870 with a folding stock, high-capacity magazine tube, and a spare shotshell holder on the folded stock just as I saw some guy standing nearby while Sarah groaned in pain.

"Are you hurt?" the guy asked in concern, and the protector looked at him.

His slightly torn face made the man pause but I saw the semi from before smashing through the remains of the helicopter, then my eyes widened when I got a look at the logo on the trailer that said it had liquid nitrogen in it.

"Holy shit," John gasped before he and I moved Sarah faster over to the stranger's truck.

"We need your truck," the protector told the man as I saw the semi bashing a car out of the way.

John and I helped Sarah into the pickup truck as they got in and the protector took the driver's seat, then I went over to the back and ripped off the miniature walls and roof on the bed before getting in the back and banged my hand on the roof to signal us to go.

The protector slammed on the gas and we took off as I got out my rifle and started firing at the semi as it gained on us, my targeting systems focusing on the windshield as bullets punched through it and started hitting the T-1000.

The bullets didn't deter it as the semi went and bashed into us, making the truck swerve as I was thrown onto the bed of the truck but I got up and resumed fire.

The semi swerved to the right and started to pass us but then it swerved into us and we were sent into the guardrail with sparks erupting as I turned and fired at the window on the driver-side door.

The semi swerved out of the way of another semi-truck and that allowed us to get ahead of the T-1000 that bashed a car out of the way, then I reloaded as the protector went to open the driver-side door and leaned out with his grenade launcher.

The protector fired and the grenade struck the semi, causing an explosion but the vehicle kept coming at us as I continued to shoot at the T-1000.

"Take the off-ramp," the protector instructed and John, who was currently driving, swerved the truck into the off-ramp and we started to leave the highway.

The protector loaded another grenade and went to fire at the semi when John swerved onto a street on the left, making the protector miss so he went to load the last grenade into the grenade launcher.

Before he could do that, the semi slammed into us again and the grenade was knocked out of the protector's hand as it landed into the bed of the truck while we crashed through a security gate that led to a factory until I loaded the last mag for my rifle.

"Okay, fuck this," I muttered as the protector tossed the empty grenade launcher in the back before getting a CAR-15.

We both climbed up onto the hood of the semi and started firing at the T-1000 at point-blank range as it got pelted by the rapid gunfire with silver craters covering its body until our guns ran empty and I went to jump back onto the bed of the truck.

As for the protector, he went to grab the steering wheel of the semi before making the vehicle swerve until it tipped over and fell on its side as we went into the factory.

My eyes widened when I saw we were about to crash into a forklift as factory workers scrambled to get out of the way when the truck smashed into the forklift, launching me through the air as a result.

I bounced across the floor and came rolling to a stop as an alarm went off in the factory and workers ran while I spotted the tanker trailer cracked open with the liquid nitrogen being released.

I got up and made sure to stay away from it since I did not want to get frozen up into a statue, just as I hurried over to the truck and went to check on John and Sarah.

"Hey, you two okay?" I asked and John nodded.

"Yeah, though she's not looking so good," John told me as he glanced at Sarah, who had a makeshift tourniquet around her leg so I scanned her injury.

"Shit, she's going to need medical attention soon or she'll bleed out," I said when I saw the door to the semi-truck open and the T-1000 climbed out.

I scowled since this thing just won't die so I took out my SPAS-12 and got ready to defend us as it jumped down and started approaching us, but it started getting soaked by the liquid nitrogen and I knew it wouldn't be mobile soon.

The T-1000 started to slow down and struggled to continue forward as its body kept getting more and more frozen when one of its legs froze and it jerked it a couple of times, causing the foot to break.

The T-1000 stumbled a little but managed to stay upright and went to move its other foot, only for that one and the leg to break until it fell.

It used its hand to stop itself from falling further and it tried yanking it up, only for it to break off and the T-1000 raised its stump to stare at it in what appeared to be horror until the Skynet model froze completely.

I saw the protector getting up nearby and taking out his 1911 Hybrid before aiming at the T-1000, then I faintly heard him say something before he fired and the bullet caused the rest of the T-1000 to shatter into pieces.

John went to leave the truck and I helped Sarah get out while making sure to mind her bad leg as John went over to the protector, who started loading one last mag into his handgun as I noticed hot molten steel pouring onto the floor and I saw the metal pieces of the T-1000 beginning to melt.

"Fuck, we need to get out of here," I stated uneasily before I went to help Sarah stand just as John came running over and the protector joined us.

I could see the silver liquid coming together and the T-1000 started reforming, just as the protector went to grab the grenade launcher from the back of the destroyed truck and load it with the last grenade.

John had Sarah hand him her shotgun before he helped me with holding Sarah upright and the four of us hurried as we quickly left the area, heading deeper into the steel factory.

We kept moving after a little bit and tried not to look back since it would just slow us down, though it didn't take long for us to come across a section of the factory that had glowing molten steel ahead.

"Wait, wait, it's too hot," Sarah groaned and we were forced to turn around to go back when we saw the T-1000 approaching in the distance.

"Shit, now what?" I wondered as the protector went to aim his grenade launcher at the T-1000.

"Go, now," the protector ordered and John frantically shook his head.

"No, we stick together!" John refused loudly and the protector looked back at him.

"John, you got to go, now," the protector urged.

"John, we need to go!" I yelled as John struggled in my grip.

"Go, now!" the protector shouted as I went to pull John away from him.

"No!" John screamed as Sarah and I dragged him away, and then we continued to make our way even deeper into the factory.

We kept moving through the factory for who knows how long as I kept my eyes and ears open, not seeing or hearing anything but that didn't mean the T-1000 wasn't still stalking us.

Still, we found a set of stairs and used them to get up to a platform that was higher up in the factory and started making our way to the opposite stairs, only to stop when we saw the T-1000 approaching before beginning to head up the steps.

"Shit, move," I ordered urgently and we headed over to a chain that would lower us below.

I went first and had John hold on to me as Sarah went to lower us into a cart before I let go of the chain, then John called up to his mother but she didn't come down and he shouted for her frantically until I grabbed him.

"John, there's nothing we can do for her right now! Your mother can take care of herself, so I need you to stay focused for me, okay?" I told him and John tried not to cry as he nodded and I pulled him into a hug to comfort him.

We soon came to a stop after that and found ourselves in a small space, so I shaped myself into a doberman and we moved through the small space.

We headed out into an open space so I turned back to normal and I had my SPAS-12 out, my targeting systems scanning around us for any signs of the T-1000 when I soon heard Sarah calling out for me and John.

John looked up at me and I gestured for him to stay close as we went to investigate the sound since I knew this was the T-1000 pretending to be Sarah to draw us out, though we eventually headed to a platform where we saw the T-1000 in the form of Sarah stumbling and going to hold on to a hook but I held John back.

"John, remember what the T-1000 can do, right?" I reminded him and John paused until he nodded and started looking at Sarah warily, just as the real one came into view behind the T-1000 with her shotgun.

"John, Adam, get out of the way," Sarah ordered as John glanced at the T-1000's feet to see it partially melded to the floor because of the errors it was experiencing from taking a huge amount of damage.

"Shoot!" John shouted before I grabbed him and threw us out of the way.

Sarah fired and a metal hole appeared on the T-1000 as I moved John into cover and went to rejoin Sarah while the T-1000 turned around and turned back into its male appearance.

Sarah and I started firing at the T-1000 as my SPAS-12 quickly became empty and I tossed it aside before taking out my other shotgun and continuing to fire, our shots knocking the T-1000 back as it started getting closer and closer to the edge until our weapons ran empty.

Sarah tried to rack the pump on her shotgun and fire but there was nothing but a click and I saw the craters on the T-1000 seal up until it mockingly wagged a finger at us.

"Fuck you!" I snarled as I threw my empty shotgun at the T-1000 and charged at it.

The Skynet model batted the weapon out of the way as I shaped my arms into blades and started swinging, causing the T-1000 to start blocking with its own arm blades.

Our blades clashed as we slashed and dodged each other's attacks before I kicked it into the railing and snapped my arm blade off to throw it as a spear.

The metal spear impaled the T-1000 but it pulled the spear out and went to swing it at me, which I kept dodging until I shaped myself into a large wolfman creature and grabbed the Skynet model with my paws.

I swung it into railings and the floor as I growled before the T-1000 managed to get the upper hand by using the hook to impale me in the back, then it picked up the spear and started stabbing me in the head with it.

I melted off the hook and moved away fast before quickly shaping into a grizzly bear and roaring as I sent the Skynet model flying a few feet across the platform with a swipe of my paw, then I shaped back to my human self and picked up the spear as the T-1000 landed close to the edge.

It got back up and I was about to fight it again when I heard Sarah yelling to get down and I didn't even think, just dove out of the way before a grenade was shot at the T-1000 and it took up a look of shock before it exploded.

I covered my head from the explosion and then I heard awful metallic screeching sounds, making me look up to see that the T-1000's body was now a twisted donut shape as it screeched.

I got up while feeling disturbed at the sight and the T-1000 fell off the edge and into the vat of molten steel, and I could still hear its unsettling screeching noises as I went to the edge to look down.

I saw the T-1000 thrashing around as it no doubt felt fear for the first time as it changed into the people it killed, though it soon took on its silver genderless form as it kept morphing and shifting until it ended with it turning itself inside out to survive but the molten steel proved to be too much and it dissolved into nothing.

"Good fucking riddance," I muttered coldly as I absorbed the spear back into my mass and turned around to go check on the protector, who was missing a left arm and half of the skin on the right side of his face and head were missing, as well as the skin on its chest.

"Holy shit," John said, looking at the state of the protector as he and I were helping him stand.

"I need a vacation," the protector admitted and I tried not to laugh at that.

"Honestly, I think we all need a vacation at this point," I agreed as John went to pick up his backpack containing the arm and the CPU of the infiltrator until we met up with Sarah at the edge of the platform.

"Is it dead?" John inquired.

"Terminated," the protector replied and John held up his bag to show the parts of the infiltrator.

"Will these melt in there?" John inquired and I nodded.

"Yeah, the molten steel is hot enough to destroy them so let's end this," I answered with a hard expression so John took out the arm to throw it into the molten steel until he did the same with the CPU.

"It's over..." Sarah trailed off, sounding tired and relieved until the protector looked at us.

"No, there's one more chip and it must be destroyed also," the protector stated as he tapped his head and I sent him a nod of understanding, just as he went to take the controls for lowering and raising the chains.

"I know, we can't let anyone get their hands on this type of technology," I said just as the protector handed the controls to Sarah.

"Here, I cannot self-terminate so you must lower me into the steel," the protector told Sarah and John widened his eyes in shock.

"No, no...no!" John shouted distressfully as he tried to stop the protector who was heading over to the chains.

"I'm sorry, John. I'm sorry," the protector apologized and John shook his head.

"No, it'll be okay! Stay with us!" John yelled as the protector looked down at him.

"I have to go away," the protector stated.

"No, don't do it! Please, don't go!" John begged and the protector gently moved him out of the way.

"I must go away now, John," the protector repeated as he went to get the chains.

"No, don't do it! Don't go!" John cried.

"It has to end here," the protector told him until John grabbed his jacket.

"I order you not to go! I order you not to go!" John yelled desperately and I carefully pulled him away from the protector before kneeling in front of John with my hands on his shoulders.

"John, I know you're hurting right now and I understand, I've lost friends and my parents so I know how much it hurts but it's not about what you want, it's about doing the right thing.

We can't let anyone get their hands on him or they'll use him to create Skynet and everything we've fought for would be for nothing.

It's really hard, I know, but there are times when we have to say goodbye," I told John gently and he struggled not to cry as tears started going down his cheeks.

"It's not fair," John whimpered and I nodded.

"I know it's not fair, nobody knows that better than me and your mother," I agreed as the protector went to look at John and wipe his tears gently.

"I know now why you cry, but it's something I could never do," the protector admitted and I let John go so that he could hug the protector, who returned it.

When the protector pulled away, he looked at Sarah who held out a hand and he went to shake it until he gazed at me, then I sent him a salute to show my respect until he went to get on the hook attached to the chains.

"Goodbye," the protector told us until Sarah started lowering him.

We watched as I rested a hand on John's shoulder to give it a comforting squeeze as the kid was sniffling and sobbing, the three of us watching as the protector was lowered into the molten steel.

The protector started submerging into the molten steel as he was getting destroyed by it and kept gazing up at us while he continued to sink until his head sank in and only his hand was shown, which sent us a thumbs-up until it was gone as well.

After the protector was gone, Sarah dropped the controls just as John went to hug her and me before we started comforting him as I showed a solemn look and so did Sarah, and we let John grieve until it was time to go.

We needed to leave the factory before the police showed up since we were wanted fugitives now after blowing up Cyberdyne Systems.

But, as we went to leave the factory, I wondered which timeline would happen now and only time will tell because no matter what happens, we would be ready for what the future holds for us.

Chapter Text

The future has not been written...there is no fate but what we make for ourselves, words Kyle Reese said to me and Sarah a long time ago as a message of hope sent by John's future self and I never stopped believing in them, even if John doubted them all his life.

Ten years, that's how long it's been since the T-1000 and the protector were destroyed as John, Sarah, and I stayed on the move, traveling under different aliases and moving from place to place to avoid getting discovered by the feds until it happened.

Sarah told us that she wasn't feeling well so we headed to a doctor's office so that she could get a check-up and it was discovered that she had leukemia, the doctor telling her that she only had a few months left and that she was to get her affairs in order while she can.

Sarah wouldn't let cancer beat her down that easily so for three years, she fought like hell to make sure that our actions prevented judgment day from happening and once the fated day arrived with no nukes dropping down from the sky, Sarah looked almost at peace that the nightmare Kyle and I fought against for so long would never come to be.

I remember her telling me and John that every day after that was a gift and that we were to never take it for granted when she passed away soon after, then John took off to become a drifter and I joined up with a few friends of mine and Sarah's in Mexico to spread her ashes at sea until we stored several weapons in a coffin and stashed it in a mausoleum in a cemetery in LA county as accordance with her will.

I didn't feel at peace because witnessing all of this, I knew I was in the Rise of the Machines timeline and that meant judgment day had merely been delayed as a result of the universe struggling to correct itself because of the alterations of the past.

So, I started getting ready for it as I found John later and we spent time on the run while John took part-time jobs whenever we weren't moving from place to place, making sure to only use cash and different fake IDs to not be identified by the feds while also refraining from using cell phones so that we couldn't be tracked.

While John was convinced judgment day would never happen because of our actions ten years ago, I knew otherwise and the thought of how our efforts were for nothing anyway led to depression and being the only advanced Skynet prototype model in a world where terminators haven't been constructed yet made me feel out of place.

There were times I started doubting myself and how the memories I had were still real or if they were imitations and that I was nothing more than a machine that was mimicking someone who had died on that table in 2029, but recalling the people who lost their lives to stop Skynet regained my determination since those sacrifices would've been for nothing if I were to just give up.

So, I kept pushing forward and kept enduring in a world that would kill to get its hands on me if it were discovered what I am as I had stocked up on a few weapons that consisted of a Colt Model 654 carbine that had an M16A1-style lightweight barrel and sights, a Benelli M4 Super 90, a Heckler and Koch USP Compact with a modified spurred hammer, and a Desert Eagle Mark VII.

I also made sure to get a few explosives like grenades to add to my arsenal while John and I lived off the grid until it was 2005 and the time had come for judgment day to arrive as John and I were taking shelter under a bridge for the night and I just stared at the crackling campfire with hard eyes while John was having an uneasy sleep.

I could almost recall the plasma fire and screams while I stared at the flames when John jerked awake and quickly looked around, no doubt shaken from another nightmare while I glanced at him before continuing my focus on the campfire.

"You okay?" I asked while John let out a shaky breath.

"Yeah, just another nightmare," John replied before he stood up and so did I, the two of us putting out the campfire and going to his motorcycle after we packed everything up.

We got on it and John put on his helmet, then we sped away and drove fast down a lonely road while I was feeling a little tense since John was going too fast for my taste and I knew what would happen next, then John suddenly swerved to try and avoid the deer that was in the road until the bike fell onto its side.

I was thrown off and was sent rolling across the asphalt while John rolled across the road as well, then we came to a stop and John groaned as I quickly got up and hurried over to him to see if he was okay while John managed to remove his helmet and started clutching his right shoulder as he gazed at the doe that took off into the forest.

"Here, let me see it," I said as I helped John sit up and started scanning his shoulder, seeing that it was dislocated.

"God...my shoulder," John groaned.

"It's dislocated, so I'm gonna need to pop it back in," I said before going to unbuckle John's belt.

I had him bite down on it and went to take hold of his arm, quickly popping his shoulder back in and John let out a muffled shout of pain while I did that before I helped him stand once I saw that he didn't have any fractures or broken bones, though he did have scrapes and a large cut on him.

"Ugh...I'm gonna need painkillers or something," John said with a pained grimace and I used my systems to look up a map of LA and the surrounding county until I located what we needed to find.

"There's an animal hospital up the road so let's try there since there are painkillers for dogs that are similar to painkillers for humans," I suggested before I took John's good arm and helped him walk down the road.

We later hitched a ride with a truck and were driven to LA, the driver dropping us off in one section of the city right in front of the animal hospital before we thanked the man, and we started walking to the animal hospital until I shaped my finger into a key to unlock the front door.

John went inside and I stayed outside to keep a lookout, shaping myself into a husky and just watching the area with my ears twitching every now and again for the slightest sound when I heard the sound of dogs going crazy inside so John must've broken into the medicine cabinet to get what he needed for the pain.

Good thing I taught him what to find since taking the wrong medication could kill him but I hoped he didn't pass out or I would have to carry him out and that would be embarrassing for him, though John was taking a long time and I was about to head into the building when my ears perked up at the sound of a car coming.

I tensed up when I saw a green Toyota belonging to the animal hospital come driving up to the middle of the parking lot until Katherine Brewster left the vehicle and started walking up to the front doors, then she paused when she saw me.

"Hey boy, what are you doing out here? Are you lost?" Kate wondered as she walked over until she kneeled in front of me and started checking my neck for a collar.

"Hmm, no collar...you must be a stray or something so let's get you inside to give you a check-up," Kate added before she stood up and clicked her tongue in a gesture for me to follow.

I followed her as she went to unlock the front doors, the two of us entering the building as Kate went to lock the doors while I made sure to alter my scent so that the dogs wouldn't freak out once they saw me since I was still a machine and my unnatural scent would agitate them.

"Cool it, guys. It's just me...I've got a sick cat coming in," Kate called out tiredly, sounding like she recently got out of bed while she locked the doors.

She went to turn on the lights as she began to make her way to the kennel and I followed her while we went down the hallway before entering the kennel, then she turned on the lights and had me go over to a cage before opening it and gently ushering me in.

"Alright boy, I'll take a look at you later so I'll be right back," Kate told me as she shut the cage door and locked it.

Once she did that, she went to enter the examination room and I switched my vision to thermal while focusing my hearing while she saw the medicine cabinet that had been broken into as broken glass was all over the floor that had an empty pill bottle nearby, prompting her to kneel so that she could pick it up and she examined it as she stood up until she sighed.

"Great, junkies," Kate muttered as she put the bottle aside and went to take out her cell phone to call the police, just as John stepped out from his hiding place that was behind her.

"Please, don't do that," John spoke up and Kate spun around to look at him with wide eyes until she regained her composure.

"I suppose you're the one who ripped us off last week," Kate said and I could see that she was trying to remain calm as John took out an airsoft replica of a Walther PPK loaded with paintball rounds.

"Put the phone down," John said while aiming the fake gun at her and Kate slowly complied as John looked a little guilty and sheepish.

"Sorry, I just...I needed some medicine," John added.

"There's an emergency clinic half a mile away," Kate reasoned but John shook his head.

"I can't do that," John replied as Kate went to pick up the empty pill bottle, looked at it, and then at John.

"How much did you take?" Kate inquired.

"Enough," John replied and Kate looked at him as if he was stupid.

"This is the stuff we use to chemically neuter dogs," Kate told him and John scoffed in response.

"Take a look," Kate said before tossing the bottle at John.

John struggled to catch it and fumbled, giving Kate the advantage to run over so that she could snatch the fake gun out of his hand and shoot him twice, causing John to let out a loud grunt of pain as he doubled over until she grabbed him and dragged John into the kennel before forcing him into a large cage and quickly shutting the door, locking it.

"Jesus, you didn't have to do that!" John shouted while Kate glared down at him.

"Next time, bring a clue, not a paintball gun," Kate snapped irritably while John went to scramble over to the cage door, grabbing the bars with his hands.

"No, this isn't what you think," John reasoned and Kate scoffed.

"Yeah, right," Kate said before the sound of a doorbell buzzed, making her look back before she left the kennel.

"Fuck," John muttered and he went to wipe his hands that had paint on them, then Kate later returned and stared down at John with a look of recognition on her face.

"Mike Kripke's basement," Kate said and John looked confused.

"What? What does that mean?" John questioned as Kate walked around to the side of his cage and kneeled to get a better look at him.

"You're John Connor...I'm Kate Brewster, we went to West Hills Junior High together," Kate told John, who didn't look like he recognized her at first but then he chuckled.

"Jesus," John muttered as he scratched his head.

"What happened to you, John? Middle of the eighth grade, you just...disappeared, and there was that thing about your foster parents," Kate said and John sighed.

"Yeah, they were murdered and I didn't do it," John told her just as the sound of glass shattering erupted nearby, making Kate look back.

"What the hell? Is somebody with you?" Kate asked as she stood up and went over to the doors, looking back at John who shook his head.

Kate left the kennel and I took the opportunity to move forward before heading through the mesh of the cage, the mesh slicing through my liquid mass when I found myself on the other side of the cage as the dogs were going nuts, then I shifted back into my human form and headed over to the cage John was locked in.

"You're getting sloppy, John. Your mother and I taught you better than to let your guard down," I remarked and John sent me an unamused look.

"Just get me out of this damn thing, please?" John requested, just as there was a scream and three gunshots that broke out nearby.

I went to kneel in front of the cage door and scanned the lock before taking out a set of lockpicks and started working on the padlock, my face holding a look of concentration as I heard more gunshots erupting nearby but paid no attention to them as I worked on getting the padlock off.

Suddenly, a commotion broke out outside as there was the roar of an engine before something smashed through the nearby wall and I dropped to the ground to cover my head while debris and rubble rained down from the hole that was in the wall as an explosion erupted nearby.

"Jesus!" I shouted while John had also covered his head, then I got back up and went to work on the lock again when a highly advanced robotic arm punched through the rubble and we looked to see familiar liquid metal flowing over to the arm in droplets and beginning to cover the arm.

"Oh god...Adam, get the fucking cage open," John said with a look of panic and I scowled.

"Fuck it," I said before putting the lockpicks away and grabbing the padlock, breaking it off with a yank until I opened the door.

I held out a hand and John took it while I took out my shotgun before I helped John get out, then we quickly left the kennel as smoke was beginning to obscure our surroundings and we got out into the hallway until footsteps echoed down the hall and we looked to our left, just as the T-850 came into view with a Remington 870 Custom in one hand and John looked baffled as the T-850 stopped once its gaze met ours.

"John Connor, it is time," the T-850 said blankly while John blinked at that.

"Are you here to kill me?" John asked nervously and I looked at him.

"If he was here to kill you, he would've shot you the second he saw us so I'm assuming he's another protector sent back through time to keep you safe," I said.

"Correct, John Connor must live," the T-850 replied before grabbing John with one hand and the machine made him move to the entrance.

I followed while keeping my shotgun at the ready as we headed to the entrance and went to leave the animal hospital, going outside as I kept my eyes and ears open since I knew a truck wouldn't stop the TX for long as we walked over to the green Toyota that now had its driver-side door missing.

"Why are you here? Where are we going?" John asked the T-850 as we walked up to the truck.

"Keep moving," the T-850 urged when shotgun blasts started breaking out nearby.

I was hit a few times by pellets that left silver craters and the fourth shot knocked me off my feet, then I hit the ground and rolled back onto my feet to see a bald middle-aged African American man with cold eyes as he looked like Lance Reddick but it was the sawed-off Mossberg 500AT in his hand that made me widen my eyes.

"Get out of here, now!" the T-850 ordered as John was forced inside the truck and I hurried over to the passenger side and got in.

The T-850 fired his shotgun as the TX was struck by pellets and I went to shoot the other unexpected threat, my eyes bugging out when I saw silver craters appear on the man who wasn't even fazed by the shotgun blasts while John tried to start the truck.

"John, get the truck started, now!" I shouted, just as the engine started and John shifted gears before slamming his foot on the gas.

The truck sped out of the parking lot while the unknown male Terminator fired at us but we managed to get away and started speeding through the streets of LA as emergency vehicles passed by us, heading to the animal hospital but I was struggling to process what the hell just happened.

Something was seriously wrong, another hostile Terminator had shown up and was targeting us so this shouldn't have happened since only the TX had shown up during the events of the third movie, and then it hit me.

This wasn't a movie anymore, this was real and my very presence must've caused an alteration somehow so I couldn't rely on movie knowledge anymore considering god knows what else has changed, which means that I have to be extra cautious from now on while John kept driving.

After a while, we drove across a bridge as I noticed the sun was beginning to rise over the horizon and I was tense, not knowing what to expect now that things had changed so much but John swerved the truck into another street just as someone started pounding on the wall behind us and I went to slide open the sliding window to reveal Kate, who was in the back.

"Let me out!" Kate demanded and my eyes widened.

"Oh shit," I said just as John looked back in disbelief.

"What?! What are you doing here?!" John exclaimed in shock.

"You tell me, you got me into this and who the hell is that?! You know what, stop the car," Kate retorted and I looked back at her.

"It's not gonna happen," I stated and Kate started looking pissed.

"You bastards, stop the car!" Kate shouted and John quickly looked back.

"Shut up!" John yelled as he closed the window just as I looked forward and saw that John was going to hit a car.

"Watch it!" I shouted and John quickly looked before attempting to brake.

It was too late as the truck bashed into the back of the car, completely totaling it as John braked to a stop and the car came to a stop a few feet away, then the driver got out while rubbing the back of his neck with a pained grimace.

"Son of a bitch," the driver muttered as he stumbled a little before he looked at the damage to his car and then at us with a livid expression.

"Goddammit, look what you two did to my car. This is my company car, assholes," the driver said and I looked at John warily.

"Get us out of here, now," I said and John tried to start the truck as the driver started walking over to us.

"Get your asses out here. Get your asses out of the car, now! What are you doing? If neither of you have insurance, I'm gonna rip your balls off," the driver threatened as he walked up to John while John raised his hands to placate him.

"Hey, listen, we don't want any problems, okay?" John reasoned but the driver wasn't listening.

"Shut up!" the driver yelled.

"Help, get me out of here!" Kate yelled and I scowled since we didn't have time to deal with this right now.

"Who's talking back there? What's going on in there? Who's back there?" the driver interrogated.

"Calm down," John said uneasily.

"Shut up!" the driver shouted just as I heard sirens beginning to approach and looked through the review mirror on the right to see emergency vehicles approaching where we were.

"Shit," I muttered just as the driver looked at the vehicles.

"Well, I'll be goddamn, a cop when you need one," the driver said and I had enough, so I got out and aimed the shotgun at the man who quickly put his hands up in alarm.

"Go, get the fuck out of here!" I yelled and the man took off running before I got back into the truck.

John managed to start the engine and we took off down the street while the police cars and ambulances were pursuing us so I got my shotgun ready, knowing that no humans were occupying the vehicles and that they were being controlled by the TX.

"That's the cops, so you have to pull over!" Kate shouted at John, who rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, first chance I get!" John countered sarcastically just as a police car accelerated on our left and swerved into us.

I couldn't shoot the vehicle because John was in the line of fire but the police car on the right hit us and I aimed out the window, blasting one of the tires and then the radiator to kill the engine before the police car swerved out of control and smashed into a street lamp.

Still, getting hit caused the truck to spin and we started getting rammed as if the vehicles were playing bumper cars with us, only more deadly and not fun at all as John struggled to regain control of the truck and that's when I saw the large crane coming into view from where we came from but it got worse when something swerved out of an alley and it was revealed to be a dump truck.

"Oh fuck, speed up!" I shouted in alarm so John accelerated the truck and we started going faster.

Another police car joined the one that was pursuing us and they swerved to surround us on both sides, ramming into us so John slammed on the brakes and the police cars shot past us before John swerved to the right to avoid a semi that was about to pass an intersection up ahead, just as a blast of plasma shot past us and hit the trailer full of gas canisters until an explosion erupted.

"What the hell was that?!" John screamed incredulously.

"Nothing good, keep driving!" I replied as I shot the tire of a police car to make it spin out of control while I saw that the crane and the dump truck were getting closer.

"Hold on!" John warned Kate before he swerved onto a sidewalk.

The arm of the crane moved until it started smashing cars, power lines, and trash bins while the dump truck swerved onto the sidewalk to add to the carnage as walls of buildings were getting destroyed so I leaned out just barely and blasted at the dump truck's tires or engine with my shotgun until I was forced to reload.

John swerved onto another street and we wound up in a neighborhood as we were rammed from behind by a police car and John swerved onto the front yards of different houses, ramming a parked car out of the way while we smashed through fences and other objects as it was bumpy until John hit a kid's bouncy house that let out a loud comical squeak as we swerved back onto the street again.

Normally, I would find that funny if I were to watch all of this on TV back in my universe but to actually experience this was not funny at all since we were trying to stay alive against not one but two homicidal machines from the future, though I finished reloading and aimed at the dump truck until I scanned the environment and discovered a possible way to stop it.

I blasted the gas tank of a car, making it explode which caused a wooden pole connected to powerlines to topple over onto the hood of the dump truck, powerlines getting tangled up in one of the tires, and that caused the dump truck to go flipping into the air before smashing into a building as the vehicle blew up on impact.

Suddenly, a wall on our right was smashed to pieces as the crane went right through and John swerved to our left to prevent the truck from getting smashed to pieces but the police car chasing us wasn't so lucky as it got destroyed.

The TX kept pursuing us and I saw that a firetruck was catching up from behind until it started ramming the crane and I witnessed the T-850 get out to jump onto the crane, just as the TX destroyed the firetruck with a plasma blast.

The T-850 moved over to the right of the cab and threw the TX out, which rolled across the asphalt until she grabbed onto the back of the crane while the T-850 got into the cab and lowered the hook that smashed through a manhole cover leading to the sewers.

The T-850 kicked out the windshield and climbed through before jumping out of sight, just as I heard the machine landing on the roof that was dented with a loud groan while Kate let out a startled scream, just as the TX got into the cab of the crane.

A few moments later the cord connecting to the hook snapped tautly and the crane was sent forward as the cab was smashed inward by the force and the entire massive vehicle tilted before landing on its side with a deafening crash, then I heard the T-850 moving around above us until he went to enter the truck from the driver side.

"Move over," the T-850 ordered John, who moved across to where I was sitting and he sat in the middle while gawking at the T-850 until he let out a shaky breath, but the machine grabbed him and yanked his head over to inspect him none-too-gently while John let out a yelp of pain when the T-850 let him go.

"No sign of brain trauma," the T-850 said while John showed a pained grimace from being manhandled in such a manner.

"Yeah, I'm fine, thanks," John retorted irritably while I looked at the T-850.

"So, I assume you're a different model than the one that was sent back ten years ago to protect John," I said and the T-850 looked at me.

"Yes, I am a slightly more advanced T-101 model than the previous design," the T-850 replied and John stared at him weirdly.

"What, do you guys come off an assembly line or something?" John questioned.

"Exactly," the T-850 said and John groaned.

"Oh man, I'm going to have to teach you everything all over again," John said before the T-850 went to open the window behind us.

"Katherine Brewster, have you sustained injury?" the T-850 inquired.

"Drop dead, you asshole!" Kate retorted angrily before the T-850 shut the window.

"I am unable to comply," the T-850 replied before we turned onto a ramp that led to the highway, and I was lost in thought after that as I went to think about everything that just happened.

Chapter Text

We kept driving down the highway for a while as I was lost in thought about what to do next since things have definitely changed and I don't think my pre-knowledge will be useful anymore so I'll just have to be extremely cautious from now on because the slightest mistake will get John and Kate killed, though we were now in the desert after a long drive and I was getting increasingly annoyed by Kate kicking the wall behind us and screaming.

"Get off at the next exit, let her out," John told the T-850.

"Negative, Katherine Brewster must be protected," the T-850 refused and John looked confused while I gazed at the Skynet model.

"I thought John was a priority target, so why is Kate a target?" I inquired.

"John Connor could not be located, so a TX was sent back through time to eliminate his lieutenants," the T-850 replied and I frowned.

"Okay, but that still doesn't explain the second Skynet model that's after us so what can you tell us about that one?" I asked.

"It is a TX-HA, more advanced than a TX-H and it was designed for extreme combat and to hunt down you, Sgt. Sullivan. It is a metal endoskeleton with a memetic polymorphic sheath surrounding it that can separate into another functioning unit.

Its endoskeleton can compress itself to allow it to fit through tight spaces but it can only mimic human appearances while it is heavily armored and like you, it is the only prototype in existence," the T-850 explained and I just blinked at that.

"Let me get this straight, you mean to tell me this TX-HA was created to hunt me down and it also used to be a human like me?" I questioned.

"Correct, but unlike you, the human consciousness inhabiting the TX-HA is a collaborator of Skynet who volunteered for the mission to terminate you," the T-850 replied and my expression darkened at that.

"Fucking collaborators..." I muttered as John cleared his throat.

"So, back to Kate, she's going to be in the resistance? No, no, you shouldn't even exist because we took out Cyberdyne over 10 years ago, so we stopped judgment day," John stated.

"You only postponed it, judgment day is inevitable," the T-850 replied until I saw that his mid-section was smoldering with smoke coming off it suddenly.

"Hey, um, smoke is coming off your mid-section," I pointed out and the T-850 looked down at it before looking back at the road.

"I require a cutting tool," the T-850 requested and John took out a multitool to give to him, which the Skynet model took until he looked at John.

"Here, take the wheel," the T-850 instructed and John leaned over to hold the steering wheel with one hand while the T-850 went to roll up the front of his shirt.

"What are you doing?" John asked as the T-850 started using the multitool to cut around the damaged area.

"I am powered by two hydrogen fuel cells and a plasma attack damaged my primary cell. The TX is designed for extreme combat, driven by a plasma reactor, and equipped with onboard weapons. Its arsenal includes nano-technological transjectors," the T-850 explained as he finished cutting around the damaged skin.

"Meaning?" John asked and the T-850 looked at him.

"It can control other machines. Its body chassis is heavily armored and hardened to withstand external attack," the T-850 replied as he peeled off the skin to reveal a section of his endoskeleton that opened to show the two hydrogen fuel cells with one of them beeping.

"You'll find a way to destroy her," John said.

"Unlikely, I am an obsolete design. The TX is faster, more powerful, and more intelligent so it is a far more effective killing machine," the T-850 said.

"Oh, great...that's great," John said sarcastically while the T-850 went to remove the damaged fuel cell.

"My presence in this timeline has been anticipated so like the TX-HA and the TX-H, the TX is designed to terminate other cybernetic organisms," the T-850 added and John stared at him weirdly.

"So, she's an anti-Terminator Terminator? You've gotta be shitting me," John said in disbelief as the section on the T-850's endoskeleton closed and the Skynet model rolled down his shirt.

"No, I am not shitting you," the T-850 replied before he tossed out the damaged fuel cell, then it later erupted into a massive devastating explosion that rocked the truck as I grabbed John to make sure he didn't get thrown forward into the dashboard.

"Jesus, the hell was that?!" I shouted in disbelief.

"When ruptured, the fuel cells become unstable so relax," the T-850 said just as Kate started screaming in the back.

"Let me out of here!" Kate yelled and the T-850 looked back.

"Relax," the T-850 said and Kate stopped screaming.

I hoped we wouldn't have to experience that again anytime soon since that was unexpected, but we drove for a little bit until we had to stop at a gas station to get gas and food and drinks for the trip so while John was busy filling up the truck, the T-850 and I were getting food and drinks for the trip.

While I was being selective as to what we should get, the T-850 was getting anything he could see as the guy working the register was commenting about there being no signal on the TV but I didn't respond and neither did the T-850 as he grabbed a pair of sunglasses to replace the one he had lost and put them on and grabbed a couple more things before he was about to leave, which caught the employee's attention.

"Hey! Hey, are you going to pay for that?" the employee questioned as he hurried over and the T-850 stopped before holding up his hand in front of the guy's face, making the employee step back a little.

"Talk to the hand," the T-850 said before walking away and I sighed until I looked at the employee sheepishly.

"Sorry about him, this should cover it," I said as I went to take out the appropriate amount of money and put it on the counter until I left the store.

I made my way to John who was waiting for us and the T-850 walked over to the back of the truck before unbarring the two doors and going to open them, then Kate jumped out but the T-850 caught her and she started hitting him but he didn't react and merely held her up by the back of her jacket so Kate started screaming for help, just as I saw the employee inside the store pick up the phone and was no doubt calling the police.

"Shit, we need to go," I stated until the T-850 threw Kate back into the back of the truck and John climbed in until I shut the doors, then the T-850 and I got into the front until we sped away from the gas station when John later knocked on the wall and I slid open the window.

"Tell her who I am," John spoke up.

"John Connor's leader of the worldwide resistance, and the last best hope for humankind," the T-850 said before I closed the window and focused on keeping an eye on our surroundings after that.

After driving for a while, we arrived at a familiar cemetery and pulled to a stop in front of a certain mausoleum, then the T-850 and I got out to go open the backdoors of the truck when we had John and Kate follow us, the four of us entering the mausoleum and walking down the hall until we came to a stop in a room that had several plaques with names and dates on them, one of them being Sarah's.

"Your mother?" Kate asked John, who looked taken off guard by what he was seeing.

"I never even knew where she was buried...I hit the road the day she died," John said breathlessly before he looked at the T-850.

"Why did you bring us here?" John asked with narrowed eyes before the T-850 walked up and moved him out of the way, then he punched through the plaque to pull out the coffin as John tried to stop him but it was useless as the coffin landed on the ground with a loud thud and the T-850 opened it to reveal the stash of weapons that made John and Kate widen their eyes in shock.

"Sarah Connor was cremated in Mexico, Sgt. Sullivan and her friends scattered her ashes in the sea, then they stored these weapons in accordance with her will," the T-850 explained before I looked at John with hard eyes as the T-850 went to go inspect the weapons and ammo in the coffin.

"This was our contingency plan, in the event we haven't stopped judgment day so we set this all up to get you ready for the day the bombs dropped from the sky," I added as John managed to sit down on a bench while looking overwhelmed.

"What happened to her?" Kate wondered.

"Leukemia," John replied and Kate's eyes softened.

"I'm sorry," Kate told him sympathetically and John sighed.

"We were living in Baja when she was diagnosed and they only gave her six months, but she fought for three years...long enough to make sure," John said.

"Make sure?" Kate questioned.

"That the world didn't end..."Every day after this one is a gift" she told me and Adam. "We made it. We're free"...but I never really believed that and I guess she and Adam didn't, either. You know, you were about the closest thing to a father I ever had.

How pathetic is that?" John said bitterly when Kate ran over to the coffin and grabbed a Glock 19, chambering a round and aiming at the T-850 who quickly stood up to face her.

"Out of my way!" Kate demanded while John and I were unfazed by what was happening.

"My mission is to protect you," the T-850 said before he started to approach Kate.

"That's enough, now move or I'll do it! I swear to god, I'll shoot you!" Kate threatened.

"Go ahead, see what happens," I said and the T-850 suddenly grabbed the gun, making Kate fire a shot instinctively and the T-850's head snapped back but then he spat out the bullet while Kate looked stunned.

"Don't do that," the T-850 said and I sighed before I stepped forward and Kate looked at me, only for her to look horrified when my entire body turned into a silvery metallic appearance.

"Does this convince you?" I questioned rhetorically as I turned back to normal and Kate was trembling from seeing the impossible.

"Oh my god," Kate gasped.

Suddenly, there was the sound of the door at the entrance being bashed open and we all looked as CS gas grenades came flying into the room, just as someone on a megaphone identified himself as a police officer and that the building was surrounded before he ordered us to release Kate, who took off running to the entrance while John was coughing from the exposure to the gas so I went over to the coffin and picked up an M249 SAW, beginning to load it with an ammo belt that was in a box magazine.

"Just leave me here, I'm not the one you want so you're wasting your time," John wheezed as the T-850 went to load a Glock 18 with an extended 33-round magazine.

"Incorrect, John Connor leads the resistance to victory," the T-850 stated.

"How? Why? Why me?" John questioned in frustration.

"You are John Connor," the T-850 replied and John rubbed his face.

"Christ, my mom and Adam fed me that bullshit since the cradle!" John shouted and I quickly sent him a glare.

"It is not bullshit, humanity would've died out if you hadn't saved us and given us a reason to live, so I don't want to hear those words coming out of your mouth again, got it?" I snapped irritably as the T-850 looked back at John, who just laughed hopelessly.

"Adam, look at me, I'm no fucking leader! I never was! I'm never going to-" John yelled in despair as the T-850 walked up to him and cut him off from saying anything else by grabbing him by the neck with one hand and lifting him in the air, making John choke as he grabbed at the T-850's wrist.

"Let go," John gagged.

"You're right, you're not the one I want. I'm wasting my time," the T-850 said coldly while I just watched and John sent me a begging look for me to help him but I just crossed my arms and stared back so John started looking pissed and glared down at the Skynet model that was choking him.

"Fuck you...you...fucking machine!" John snarled before the T-850 dropped him and my godson started coughing and gasping for air.

"Better," the T-850 said before going to pick up a Browning M1919A4 and he started loading it.

"You were just dicking with me?!" John wheezed.

"Anger is more useful than despair," the T-850 replied.

"What?" John questioned in confusion.

"Basic psychology is among my subroutines," the T-850 said before John sent me a look of disbelief as I finished loading the M249 SAW and racked the charging handle.

"Adam, you knew he wasn't going to kill me?!" John exclaimed in shock and I looked at him.

"It would go against his current programming, so you weren't in any real danger but you need to understand that we are fighting a war for survival so we don't get to just give up or there is no hope for a better future.

Believe me, there were times when I doubted myself but I kept going, you know why? Because your father's sacrifice and the sacrifice of so many people to end this nightmare in the future would be for nothing if I were to just give up hope altogether, and hope is a very dangerous thing to lose," I stated before gesturing for John to get into the coffin.

John hesitated but he reluctantly went to get into the coffin and I shut it before the T-850 lifted the coffin with one arm while holding the loaded M1919A4 with his other hand as I lifted the SAW and we both headed to the stained glass window and walked through it, glass shattering as a result as I saw SWAT officers of the LA County Sheriff's Department aiming MP5A2s and M4A1 Carbines at us while they were using police cars as cover.

"Drop your weapons...and the coffin!" the SWAT captain ordered.

When we didn't comply, he ordered the other SWAT officers to open fire and they fired their weapons at us but the bullets had no effect as we went to turn to face them with cold expressions as I shouldered the SAW, and then we fired our machine guns.

The SWAT officers immediately ducked behind cover while a few dove over the cars to take cover as the cars were getting pelted by gunfire just as one car exploded when the T-850 and I stopped firing, and then I used my scan vision to see if we hit anyone and the results say that there were zero casualties.

The T-850 and I continued the walk away with the SWAT officers returning fire until we walked over to a hearse, the T-850 putting the coffin in the back before he and I got into the front while John opened the coffin.

"We must reacquire Katherine Brewster," the T-850 stated.

"Why? What makes her so goddamn important?" John questioned loudly as the T-850 went to hotwire the hearse.

"Through her, you and Sullivan make contact with remnants of the US Military and learn how to fight Skynet, forming the core of the resistance. Later, your children will become important," the T-850 explained, causing John to do a double-take.

"Whoa, what?" John asked.

"She's your wife," the T-850 clarified after he was done hotwiring the hearse and then he slammed his foot on the gas.

John was thrown back by the sudden movement of the hearse that started speeding through the cemetery as the SWAT officers kept firing at us but we escaped them and kept driving, heading through the cemetery and searching for Kate when I saw her and the TX as the latter had changed her arm into a plasma cannon so I picked up a loaded Type 69 RPG and went to climb out the window before the hearse skidded to a stop in front of Kate.

I made sure she wasn't in danger of getting hit by the backblast and aimed over the roof directly at the TX, firing the RPG, and the rocket shot at the TX until she was launched through the air and smashed right through a gravestone, then I ducked back into the hearse and went in the back just as John opened the passenger door and yelled at Kate to get in.

She quickly ran over to get into the passenger seat and we sped away, avoiding gravestones and trees until we crashed through a locked gate and got onto a dirt road, just as I picked up the SAW and got ready to use it.

"It was Scott, how could it be Scott?!" Kate exclaimed in shock.

"Your fiance?" John questioned.

"The TX is polymimetic, able to take the form of anything it touches. Your fiance is dead," the T-850 explained and Kate was silent after that.

We kept driving and got back onto a road with vehicles on it, swerving to avoid cars and trucks when something landed on the roof and Kate screamed at the sight of a saw going through the ceiling and slowly cutting across the roof so I was about to fire the machine gun at the TX when we got rammed from behind.

I quickly looked out the opening where the back window used to be and saw the TX-HA chasing us in a stolen police car, then he aimed an IMI Gali ARM Model 372 out the window at us and started firing with bullets impacting the hearse.

"Get down!" I shouted and John ducked while covering his head.

I aimed the SAW out the window and started firing back at the police car, bullets going through the windshield and impacting the TX-HA when the hearse started swerving, throwing my aim off a little but I managed to refocus on the TX-HA just as his liquid metal sheath started melting off him to reveal a sleek silvery grey endoskeleton as the silvery metallic substance poured through the bullet holes and shaped into a replica of the machine's default human form.

My eyes widened as I saw it form on the hood of the police car and leap at us with its arms forming into blades so I trained the SAW on it and fired just as the TX peeled open the roof, just as John grabbed an AKMS with a chopped barrel and two magazines in a duel clamp.

While John was firing at the TX, my shots sent the separated polymorphic unit back onto the hood of the police car when my SAW ran out of bullets so I dropped it and grabbed a Sage Control SL-6 Rotary Launcher before aiming out the back window and shot a grenade at the police car.

The police car exploded just as the T-850 told us to get down, and then I looked back to see that we were in the path of a semi that struggled to brake as the driver blared its horn at us so I ducked down and covered my head just as the trailer attached to the semi sheared off the roof and knocked the TX off us on impact before we went down a hill and swerved onto another road as John, Kate, and I raised our heads.

"We need a new vehicle," the T-850 stated.

"No shit," I agreed before we kept driving, attempting to get as far away from the TX and TX-HA as possible while hoping to find a new vehicle.

Chapter Text

We drove for a little bit as we tried to get as far away from the TX and TX-HA as much as possible, turning onto a dirt road and heading down it for a short time until we soon pulled up to a camping site with an RV and the T-850 went to open the driver-side door, which fell off. At the same time, I hopped out of the nearly destroyed hearse.

"Okay, we load up here and take that RV so take a moment to relax because we can't stay here long," I told John and Kate while the T-850 walked over to the RV and opened the door, breaking the lock in the process while he went to look inside.

As he was doing that, John and I were busy getting our weapons and supplies out of the hearse when I noticed that Kate was still sitting in the passenger seat, tears of grief rolling down her cheeks and I felt awkward since I didn't know what to say to her, though showing my sympathy would help as I stopped what I was doing momentarily and walked over to Kate.

"Hey, um...I know it's not much, but I'm sorry about your fiance. Nobody deserves to lose someone like that so...yeah, I'm sorry," I said quietly but Kate didn't respond as John came over with his bag and the AK.

"Hey, come on. We've got to keep moving," John told her softly with a look of sympathy and Kate gazed up at us as she sniffled.

"She killed Scott because of me," Kate said and my eyes softened.

"Come on, don't do that to yourself...blaming yourself never helps you so trust me, I know. I've lost people during the war against Skynet, friends and family, and I've blamed myself for it for the longest time but...if we don't keep going for them, then their deaths would've been for nothing.

If there's anyone you should blame, then blame Skynet since that bastard is the whole reason why all of this is happening in the first place, why people are dying," I stated and John nodded.

"He's right, and I know this won't help...but things happen sometimes that we just can't change, so it's not your fault," John added and Kate looked down before sniffling, making me place a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, we're gonna go load up our supplies on the RV so once you feel like you're ready, then come see us so that we can discuss our next move, okay?" I told her and Kate showed a small nod in response, then John and I walked away to give her some space as we met up with the T-850 who was doing a weapon check on the grenade launcher and John placed his AK and bag on the picnic table.

"Are you sure about this? About her and me, I mean?" John asked the T-850, who looked at him.

"Your confusion is not rational. She is a healthy female of breeding age," the T-850 said and John let out an awkward chuckle while I sent the Skynet model a dry look.

"Yeah, that's not exactly how it works because a couple has to get to know each other first before they enter into a relationship," I pointed out and the T-850 looked at me.

"My database does not encompass the dynamics of human pair bonding," the T-850 told me before he started to walk away, making me roll my eyes as John and I followed the Skynet model.

"So, this Terminatrix and TX-HA, how many others do they have on their hit list?" John inquired as we walked to the hearse and went to get the rest of the weapons from the coffin.

"Twenty-two. Anderson Elizabeth, Anderson William, Barrera Jose, Brewster Robert-" the T-850 listed, and that made Kate's eyes widen.

"My father?" Kate gasped before she got out of the hearse.

"Having failed to acquire its primary target, the TX will resume its default program," the T-850 replied while placing more weapons on the picnic table.

"She's going to kill my father too?" Kate questioned in disbelief and the T-850 looked at her.

"There's a high probability," the T-850 said and Kate shook her head as John and I walked over to her.

"No," Kate said as John looked at her.

"Who is he? What does he do?" John asked and Kate turned her attention to him.

"He's in the Air Force. Weapon design, secret stuff, I don't know exactly," Kate replied as the T-850 started walking back to the hearse.

"General Robert Brewster is the program director of CRS. Cyber Research Systems, autonomous weapons division," the T-850 explained and my eyes hardened.

"Skynet...you're talking about Skynet, aren't you?" I questioned grimly while John's eyes widened in shock.

"Skynet is one of the digital defense systems developed under Brewster's supervision," the T-850 replied as Kate, John, and I glanced at one another until John returned his attention to the Skynet model.

"Oh god...oh my god...of course, it all makes sense now. If you hadn't come back when I was a kid, if everything hadn't changed, she and I would've gotten together then. See, I would've met her father a long time ago.

Don't you see?" John said breathlessly as he looked to be struggling to take in this new realization while Kate looked bewildered.

"I don't understand," Kate said in confusion and John sighed.

"Your father, all of this is about your father. He's the key, he always was so your father is the one who can shut Skynet down, the only one who ever could. We have to get to him before the TX and the TX-HA does," John stated.

"Negative, I cannot jeopardize my mission," the T-850 refused as he went back to the hearse to grab more weaponry and John gawked at him.

"This is your mission, to save people!" John argued and I shook my head.

"No, his mission is to make sure you and Kate survive so he could care less about what happens to Kate's father," I told him and John sputtered before glaring at the T-850.

"I'm giving you an order," John demanded but I knew that wouldn't work.

"I am not programmed to follow your orders. After the nuclear war, you and Katherine Brewster will lead," the T-850 replied as Kate started looking horrified.

"Nuclear war?!" Kate yelled while John gritted his teeth.

"There doesn't have to be a war, so we can stop it!" John shouted in frustration while the T-850 placed ammo on the picnic table.

"There is insufficient time, the first launch sequences will be initiated at 6:18 PM," the T-850 said and my eyes narrowed.

"So, judgment day is today? Of course, it is...why the fuck wouldn't it be?" I wondered bitterly.

"Affirmative," the T-850 confirmed and I let out a humorless laugh in response, knowing full well that I was going to face that hell again but instead of it being at the end of the war, I would be facing it from the very beginning now.

"John, Adam, what is he saying?" Kate questioned and John let out a shaky sigh.

"The end of the world...it's today, three hours from now," John replied.

"Two hours and 53 minutes. We must continue south into Mexico to escape the primary blast zones," the T-850 said as he walked past us with the M1919A4.

"No, we have to get to her dad," John refused as the T-850 placed his machine gun up against the picnic table and looked at him.

"The Mojave area will sustain significant nuclear fallout. You will not survive," the T-850 stated coldly and John stared at him in disbelief.

"You mean we just...we go run and hide somewhere in a hole while the bombs fall?" John sputtered.

"It is your destiny," the T-850 replied, then John pulled out a Glock 36 and placed the barrel against his head in frustration as my eyes widened in alarm and so did Kate's.

"Fuck my destiny," John spat out angrily.

"John," Kate gasped while I studied my godson and then I relaxed since my systems scanned him and his body language, slight micro-expressions, and heart rate told me that he was bluffing and wouldn't actually kill himself.

"You cannot self-terminate," the T-850 stated.

"No, you can't. I can do whatever the hell I want so I'm a human being, not some goddamn robot," John retorted.

"Cybernetic organism," the T-850 corrected him.

"Whatever, either we go to her father and we get him to shut Skynet down, stop this shit from ever happening, or so much for the great John Connor because your future, my destiny...I don't want any part of it. I never did," John stated stressfully and I sent him a hard glare.

"So, what, you're just gonna kill yourself and damn all of humanity in the process? No, you aren't going to do that, John," I said and John glared at me.

"Oh yeah? And how would you know that I wouldn't?" John spat out, the young man just looking tired and frustrated with all of the crap that's been thrown at him all his life as the T-850 started approaching him.

"Based on your pupil dilation, skin temperature, and motor functions, I calculate an 83% probability that you will not pull that trigger," the T-850 spoke up and John hesitated while Kate looked at the Skynet model.

"Please...please do what he says. You have to save my father!" Kate begged and there was a short silence as the T-850 glanced at her.

"We can reach CRS in approximately one hour, depending on traffic conditions," the T-850 replied before turning around and walking over to the picnic table as John lowered his Glock and he and Kate shared a look of confusion.

"Let's go, we need to get everything into the RV and leave before the TX and TX-HA show up," I said before I walked over to the picnic table and went to take out my weapons to do a weapon check while reloading them, storing them into my mass before I helped the T-850 load them into the RV until all of us got in and the T-850 hotwired the RV, driving us to our next destination.

"I can't get a line," Kate spoke up after we drove for a while, now going down a long stretch of road in the desert while John and I were making C4 explosives.

"The whole cell network's down," Kate added while she was sitting in the passenger seat, putting down a phone.

"Skynet is assuming control over global communication in preparation for its attack," the T-850 told her.

"So, if this war is between people and machines, why are you on our side?" Kate asked.

"The resistance captured me and reprogrammed my CPU. I was originally designed for assassination missions," the T-850 explained and I huffed.

"Yeah, your predecessor back in 1984 attempted that by trying to kill Sarah," I scoffed before going back to work.

"So...you don't really care if this mission succeeds or not. If we get killed, does that mean anything to you?" Kate inquired.

"If you were to die, I would become useless and there would be no reason for me to exist," the T-850 replied.

"Thank you for doing this," Kate said gratefully.

"Your gratitude is not required. I am programmed to follow yours and Sgt. Sullivan's commands," the T-850 said, which caught the attention of me, John, and Kate.

"Their commands?" John questioned in confusion.

"It was Katherine Brewster and Adam Sullivan who had me reactivated and sent through the time displacement field," the T-850 replied as John and I left our seats, the two of us heading to the front.

"What exactly am I in this future of yours?" Kate asked curiously.

"You're John Connor's spouse and second-in-command," the T-850 replied, then Kate gave him a weird look and glanced at John before shaking her head.

"No, I..." Kate trailed off and looked at John again.

"What?" John questioned.

"You're a mess," Kate stated and John scoffed.

"Hey, you're not exactly my type, either," John countered before I looked at the T-850.

"There's one thing I still don't get, why didn't John send you back?" I inquired.

"He was dead," the T-850 said, and it made me wince.

"Oh...well, that sucks," John said.

"Humans inevitably die," the T-850 stated.

"Yeah, I know. So, how does it...no, maybe I don't want to know," John said uncomfortably.

"How does he die?" Kate asked.

"John Connor was terminated on July 4th, 2032. I was selected for the emotional attachment he felt toward my model number, due to his boyhood experiences. This aided in my infiltration," the T-850 explained as John's eyes widened.

"What?! What are you saying?" John questioned and the T-850 looked back at him.

"I killed you," the T-850 told him and I just stared down at the floor with a dark look.

Even though I've heard those words before on screen, to hear them now in this universe after raising John for twenty years of his life made my synthetic blood run cold and I could imagine that my future self in this alternate timeline was completely devastated from losing John.

I couldn't go through something like that, not after seeing so much death and carnage so while I knew judgment day couldn't be stopped, I could make sure John didn't die since my presence had already changed so much.

Still, we had to focus on getting to the CRS facility first as we continued driving and John went to continue working on the explosives while I sat on the bed in the back to think for a little bit as Kate went to talk to John, though I didn't pay attention to what they were saying.

Even so, we still drove to our destination and it took a while until we soon arrived at the facility, though we had to sneak past security that was guarding the building and restricted floors to get to where General Brewster was, just as we entered the command room to discover the TX in Kate's form as she had gotten the general's attention.

She was going to kill him so the T-850 fired his UMP45 and I fired my rifle, the barrage of bullets knocking the TX back as her body jerked multiple times until she was thrown to the floor as General Brewster froze in horror by witnessing who he thinks was his daughter being killed as other CRS employees were fleeing the room in terror.

"Daddy, get away from it!" Kate called out while the T-850 and I tossed our weapons now that they were empty, making General Brewster turn around and look bewildered just as the TX got up an changed back to her default form, taking out a Beretta M9.

"General, take cover!" I yelled before the general was shot a few times as the TX-HA entered the room.

"Oh shit!" John exclaimed once he saw the other Skynet model so I charged at the TX-HA and slammed into it, the two of us grappling as the TX was blasted through a wall by the grenade launcher the T-850 was carrying.

"Get the general up and run! I'll hold this bastard off for as long as I can!" I yelled before throwing a few punches into the TX-HA's face.

I was thrown through a wall and we wound up in another corridor as we traded blows and smashed through a few walls, winding up in a few sections of the facility as I grabbed a computer and smashed it into the TX-HA's head, grabbing him and slamming his face through a few walls.

He knocked my hands away and yanked a fire extinguisher from a wall before whacking me in the head with it a few times, then I was launched through a glass wall from a kick and the glass shattered as I crashed into a wall, leaving an imprint while I left it.

I scowled as the TX-HA moved through the hole in the glass before charging at me and I was tackled into an observation room, nearly smashing into a console before I was thrown through the glass and went flying until I landed into a machine of some kind.

I went to get up but found that I couldn't budge as the machine began to start up with a hum as I was pinned by what appeared to be a magnetic force, and then I was shot through a tunnel of some kind with electricity arcing around me until everything went white.

The next thing I knew, I was sent flying backward in what appeared to be a ruined building and crashed into a bunch of rubble before I lay there as my systems were offline for a few seconds, then they booted back up and I went to stand as I noticed that I was naked.

I glanced around while taking everything in as the interior of the ruined building felt very familiar to me and not in a good way, so I scanned everything and information popped up that made me freeze in horror as the results told me that John and Kate were dead, that I was in the future but there was 0.00% of the human population.

"No...oh fuck, no," I whimpered as I fell to my knees with synthetic tears welling up and running down my cheeks.

I let out quiet sobs as I realized that I was in an alternate timeline where the TX and TX-HA had killed John and Kate, and because they were dead, the survivors of judgment day weren't taught how to fight back against the machines and given hope so humanity was rendered extinct as a result.

I was all alone in this hell, a world now fully under Skynet's control, and that meant I didn't have the resistance backing me up this time so I was going to have to be extremely cautious if I wanted to stay alive but it wasn't completely hopeless.

The TDE, if I could get to it, I could travel back to 2005 and prevent John and Kate's deaths but I'll need clothes, weapons, and ammunition since getting to the TDE means I'll need to go deep into Skynet's territory and that meant dealing with hundreds if not thousands of Skynet troops all by myself.

I let out a shaky breath as I stood up and glanced around for anything that I could use, then I found a skeleton next to me with a dark grey t-shirt with tears in it, dark brown slightly torn pants with a belt that had pouches on it, and black combat boots.

I also saw a plasma rifle lying next to the skeleton so it'll have to do for now until I can get better firepower, then I scanned the clothes and formed a replica of them on my body as I took any ammo off the body to stuff them in my ammo pouches and picked up the plasma rifle, looking at the ruins in front of me and letting out a nervous sigh.

"Alright, here we go," I muttered before taking off in a jog and preparing myself for the fight of a lifetime.

Chapter Text

The second I started jogging through the ruined building, I encountered a T-800 and didn't hesitate to blast it into scrap before continuing forward until I saw a large aircraft that was coming and my eyes widened when I saw it was shooting some kind of yellow energy beams to the ground.

My scanners picked up how hot it was and I did not want to get hit by that, so I quickly moved out of the way and ran past it as debris up ahead was destroyed by the energy beams, conveniently clearing up a path for me.

I continued forward while dodging more energy beams and blasted two T-800s before moving through what used to be a mall, just as a T-800 jumped down in front of me and I quickly reacted by turning my arm into a blade and slicing off its head.

I blasted another T-800 that was up ahead and quickly moved into cover to avoid more energy beams that were shooting down from another aircraft, coming across two more T-800s so I sliced one in half and stomped its head to crush it before blasting the other one into scrap.

I destroyed a third T-800 as I made my way to the exit and kicked the doors open, reloading my plasma rifle and coming across some kind of mobile machine I wasn't familiar with but had a feeling I would need to use it to make it to my destination faster.

I jumped up and landed on top of it, sending my fist through it before my hand melted and traveled through its insides, entering its circuits and more, my HUD showing new information about the Skynet model and how it works.

I went to hack the machine and took control of it, moving its guns around and I made it move forward as it revved up before heading to a bunch of debris that acted like a ramp, then I went flying through the air with the machine as more Skynet troops started firing at me.

I used the machine's guns to blast them into scrap and had the machine turn to avoid more energy beams while blasting more Skynet troops, crashing through what used to be glass doors and going down a route on the left until I went up a ramp of debris to avoid more energy beams.

I went flying through the air again and hit the ground as the machine kept accelerating forward, my targeting systems immediately locking onto enemy Skynet models and I had the machine blast them before they could shoot while I drove through a tunnel.

Another mobile machine showed up and started firing but several shots from the hacked machine's cannons took care of it as I turned onto a destroyed street with wrecked buildings around me, blasting another mobile Skynet unit as a few more showed up with aerial models I wasn't familiar with.

Regardless, I started blasting them with the machine's cannons, and most of them got destroyed while I sped through the ruined streets of LA before getting onto what used to be an interchange and I drove across it, swerving onto intact roads and avoiding energy beams before I ran out of road and flew through the air.

I landed on the ground below and continued speeding through the ruins of the city, getting onto a street and started taking fire from Skynet troops so I blasted any that got in my way as the mobile machine I was using was taking a lot of damage from plasma fire.

Still, I kept shooting and driving as I spotted one of the aircraft up ahead, which gave me an idea that was probably insane but I've been doing pretty crazy shit so far so I turned the mobile machine onto debris that acted like a ramp and went flying at the aircraft.

I shaped my hand back to normal and pulled it out of the machine before leaping off and grabbing onto the side of the aircraft with one hand, slinging my rifle behind my back so that I could climb and punch my fist through the aircraft.

"Shit, I've gotta out of my fucking mind," I muttered before pulling with all my strength.

The aircraft tilted and was now moving on its side in midair, its energy beams destroying a few aircraft when I looked down and saw mobile machines below so I jumped off the aircraft and landed on one of them, punching through it and hacking the mobile machine.

I started driving and the other Skynet troops immediately became hostile before shooting at me, prompting me to respond by firing the cannons to destroy a few of them as I raced through the ruins and took a path that went through what was left of a building.

I ran over a T-800 and it started climbing up but I aimed my plasma rifle at it with one hand and turned it into scrap after shooting it a few times, driving to a ramp and going straight into the air before winding up on another highway and smashing through an airport.

I crashed through broken windows and wound up outside again before I saw a hook on a destroyed crane, jumping up and putting my rifle away so that I could grab the hook with both hands and I swung around to a massive Skynet land vehicle so I suppose FK Titan would be fitting for it.

I let go and landed on the massive vehicle before going to grab one of its guns and ripping it out with both hands, lifting it, and started firing at dozens of T-800s as they were all vaporized while aerials tried to stop me, but I shot them down.

I also started destroying what appeared to be power sources to something, not sure what, but it'll cause damage for sure as I continued laying out the hate on these bastards, letting out a scream of rage and fury for everything Skynet put me and humanity through.

"Fuck you, tin-cans!" I roared as I kept destroying Skynet's troops left and right while ruined buildings crumbled.

Skynet models continued to be turned into scrap as explosions continued to happen all around me with each one getting destroyed, but it didn't take long for me to see a massive carrier in the distance as it was hovering and I was reaching the edge of a gigantic crater so I had no choice but to jump.

I threw the large gun down and waited before jumping onto one of the wings of the carrier as the land vehicle went over the edge and fell into the crater, just before the carrier started to ascend into the sky, and I started climbing up while making sure to watch my footing.

Once I jumped up onto the main section of the carrier, I heard the roaring of the engines and wondered what to do next since my destination was somewhere down below, though I didn't have much time to figure out what to do next as I was suddenly attacked by more Skynet troops that were boarding the carrier or flying up to surround me.

I took out my rifle and started blasting them into scrap as I started making my way across the carrier, showing no mercy as I kept fighting and reloading until I ran out and tossed away the rifle before grabbing one T-800, headbutting it and throwing it to the ground before ripping its head off.

I threw the metal skull away and picked up the destroyed Skynet model's plasma rifle before shooting at more HK and Terminator units when I spotted a mounted cannon and ran over to it, punching my fist through it and hacking the cannon.

At the same time, an aerial I was familiar with showed up and I turned the cannon to fire at it, aiming at its engines and I ducked to avoid getting blasted into pieces even though I would reform from it later after recovering.

The Skynet model took heavy damage after many shots and it spun out of control before exploding, then I took care of a few more HK aerial models while also blasting missiles so that I wouldn't get blown up until no more aerials showed up.

I pulled my hand out of the cannon and continued further across the carrier as I took care of more Skynet troops who tried to kill me and saw the engines of the carrier and decided to destroy them since I wasn't going to make it to the TDE as long as I was still in the air.

With that in mind, I started blasting the engines and they began taking damage as more Skynet models showed up to stop me but I was relentless while large humanoid machines appeared to try to kill me, so I scowled.

"Son of a bitch," I muttered irritably.

It was a pain in the ass because of the large yellow plasma blasts shot at me, but I managed to destroy the large machines and went to finish off the remaining engines until I saw that more aerials were coming in to deal with me while the carrier began to drop from the sky.

I fired at them and was sent flying back from a missile, crashing into a massive gun and I got on top of it to punch my fist inside and take control before I started aiming the gun at the aerials that were flying in to kill me.

I started firing at the seemingly endless aerials and giant metal walkers that kept showing up and I roared as I fired at the enemy, my rage and hatred of these metal bastards keeping me going as I destroyed who knows how many HK models.

In the end, they stopped coming as the carrier continued falling and explosions started erupting from it, just as I pulled my hand out of the gun and ducked from debris flying at me before I was forced to jump onto the main section of the carrier.

I saw that the carrier was about to crash into the heart of Skynet territory and I braced for impact before the carrier went crashing through the area, then I was thrown inside before finding a small aerial that had debris covering it so I removed the debris and got on top of the aerial before punching my fist through it and hacking it to take control of it so that I could descend into a tunnel.

I kept flying through the tunnel for a bit and swerved to avoid pipes that were in the way while shooting fans to stop them momentarily so that I could pass by the gaps between the fan blades, though it didn't take long for Skynet security bots to respond and start attacking me.

I started blasting any of them that got in my way as I continued to go deep into Skynet territory before I was forced to pull my fist out of the aerial and jump into a section of the complex before I fell and started sliding down as I tried to grab onto something.

I went over the edge and continued falling before grabbing onto something, only it broke, and I fell again until I landed on the ground and got up to see that I was in an area that had T-900 towers for something.

I was so close to getting back to 2005 so I had to do a few more things before activating the TDE, and it was that thought that ran through my head as I went to hack into a mobile machine and use it to start to navigate the area faster.

I drove around and began shooting the locks on the towers while Skynet troops arrived and started attacking me, prompting me to retaliate by firing back and I destroyed a few aerials while shooting the rest of the locks on the towers.

Suddenly, a massive door opened nearby to reveal a pathway that possibly led to the TDE just as an HK Bomber activated and took off into the tunnel, so I chased after it since I had a feeling that it needed to be destroyed.

It must be after the generators for the TDE to destroy them so that I couldn't get back to 2005, something that can't happen since I cannot be trapped in this post-apocalyptic hell all alone or I would be driven insane from loneliness and fighting against Skynet constantly.

So, I went after it and aimed at it to destroy the engines to prevent that from happening, using the upper sections of the tunnel to get a better aim at the engines as more Skynet troops started attacking me to try to stop me.

I retaliated by shooting back at them to destroy them while I chased after the bomber, and there were beams of white light that created more upper sections for me to use as I kept driving and using ramps to jump across gaps.

I kept destroying more aerials while targeting the engines of the bomber, taking out the last one and making my way to the lower sections of the tunnel just as the bomber began to descend as it reached the edge of a seemingly bottomless pit.

Thinking fast, I drove to the edge and jumped over to the bomber just as it started tilting, and I ran over to the front before punching my fist into it and taking control so that I could upright it again, and then I started flying to where a bunch of power sources were.

I went to destroy them by using the guns on the bomber and more aerials arrived to try and stop me but I responded by blasting them into scrap, navigating the bomber through the tunnel, and destroying the power sources and aerials, hoping to do as much damage to Skynet as possible before I traveled back to 2005.

I kept raising hell as I destroyed power sources and aerials before descending into another tunnel and fighting my way to the TDE until I saw my way to the TDE was beginning to close so I accelerated the bomber to hurry.

Once I was close enough, I dove through the opening just as it closed and the bomber exploded, then I fell for a bit before landing on an aerial and using it to descend to where the TDE was as I saw dozens of Skynet troops just waiting for me.

I saw a large humanoid machine that aimed its guns and fired but I navigated the area to avoid the shots before jumping on top of the machine and going to hack into it, taking control of the machine and I started making my way to the generators.

I blasted or stomped any Skynet model that got in my way and fired a proximity beam at one large humanoid machine before pushing it to one of the generators to charge it up, and I took care of a couple of aerials until I fried another large humanoid machine and pushed that one over to the second generator to charge it until the TDE was at full power.

After that, I finished off the rest of the Skynet troops that were in here and destroyed the large humanoid machine I was using, looking around to make sure everything was clear before dropping my plasma rifle and looking at the TDE.

I let out a tired sigh and started walking up to the TDE, hacking into it to activate it and I went to stand on the platform as it started charging while I imputed the date and then there was a bright light after that.

Chapter Text

Everything was still white as I was traveling back to 2005, feeling nothing like before because of my inhuman body but then I suddenly found myself kneeling in a hallway with a few dead bodies as gunfire and explosions raged on somewhere nearby.

I was naked once again so I formed the clothes I was wearing before winding up in that horrible alternate future and made sure to check the inside of my mass, finding my firearms still there so I breathed a sigh of relief that they hadn't been destroyed when I was transported to the future.

Still, I needed to find John and Kate since they were in serious danger so I took out my shotgun and started running through the halls of the CRS facility, avoiding T-1 robots and mini aerials along the way as I kept running.

I came across more dead bodies while I ran and decided to head to the hangers since John and Kate would attempt to take General Brewster's plane to Crystal Peak, so I ran out of the facility and bolted to where the hangers were just as I spotted John and Kate running across the tarmac.

"John, Kate!" I called out loudly, causing them to stop and look at me.

"Adam? Thank god, we thought the TX-HA got you when it and the TX came after us," John said with a sigh of relief.

"It nearly did, but I managed to get away so where are we going?" I inquired as we continued running.

"Before he died, General Brewster told me and Kate to head to Crystal Peak, so it's gotta be where Skynet is," John explained.

"What about the T-850? I don't see him with you two," I pointed out.

"He told us to run when we came across the TX, so we don't know if he's okay or not," John replied and I frowned.

"He can take care of himself, but for now, we need to get to Crystal Peak so any ideas?" I asked and Kate nodded.

"We can fly there, so this way," Kate said before we continued running.

We passed by vehicles that were on fire and bodies of dead soldiers, security guards, and employees as we hurried to the hangers and I gazed around at all of the carnage with a bitter look since this was tiny compared to what was coming.

Regardless, I needed to stay focused so I ran with John and Kate before we spotted the hangers and started running to one of them, moving as fast as we could as we went to enter the hanger and I saw General Brewster's plane just sitting there.

"There's my father's plane, I trained on it," Kate told us breathlessly as we ran to the plane.

"Good, see if you can get it started up," I said while John pulled out the wedge to free the plane's front wheel.

Kate went to get into the pilot seat and started to flick switches to start up the plane while John and I were about to enter the aircraft when we heard the sound of a door opening and whipped our heads back at the source, turning around and then we spotted the T-850 approaching from a distance.

"Yes, he made it," John informed Kate while I tensed up when I saw that the T-850 was appearing to walk pretty stiffly as if his legs were damaged, his head not looking too great as parts of his skin were missing to reveal the metal underneath.

"John, something's wrong," I said and John looked at me in confusion.

"Get away from me. Leave, now!" the T-850 called out, his voice sounding strained and a little distorted as Kate opened the door to the co-pilot seat.

"John, Adam, let's go!" Kate yelled urgently.

That prompted us to turn around to run to the open doorway, John lowering the seat so that I could climb into the back and he raised the seat before climbing in to sit down and shut the door, then Kate went to continue starting up the plane while John urged her to hurry up until the T-850 opened the door and grab John to throw him out as the young man went flying and rolled across the ground.

"Fuck!" I swore loudly as the T-850 started going after John stiffly.

"Please...you can't do this," John begged as I lowered the seat and got out of the plane, running past the T-850 and helping John stand before getting in front of him to protect him.

"I have no choice, The TX...h-has c-corrupted my system," the T-850 said while Kate started the plane.

"Listen to me, this is not what you're programmed to do so you need to fight it," I said tensely while Kate got out of the plane.

"Let him go!" Kate shouted as she started charging the T-850, but I quickly raised a hand, and that made her stop.

"Kate, stay back!" I yelled tensely while John and I kept backing away from the T-850, who continued approaching us.

"You're fighting it right now," John reasoned.

"My CPU is intact, but I cannot control my other functions," the T-850 replied.

"You don't have to do this. You don't want to do this!" John yelled as we continued backing up.

"Desire is irrelevant, I am a machine," the T-850 stated coldly before I charged him and slammed my shoulder into his midsection.

He slid a couple of feet before grabbing me and throwing me aside, making me crash into a tool cabinet that dented from the impact and tools came flying out with a few landing on me, so I moved them off me and got up just to see the T-850 grab John and throw him onto a Jeep, causing the windshield to crack.

John groaned in pain as the T-850 approached and pinned him down with his hand on his neck, just as I started running over while John choked and was grabbing at the hand choking him but I knew it was useless for him to try to get free since the T-850 was much stronger than a regular human.

"Hey, what is your mission?!" I shouted as I came to a stop next to the T-850 and John.

"To ensure the survival of John Connor and Katherine Brewster," the T-850 replied, sounding like he was struggling to speak as he struggled to raise a fist, and that indicated he was fighting like hell to not kill him.

"You are about to fail that mission," John gagged as I quickly looked at the T-850, who slammed his fist on the hood of the car.

"I...I cannot," the T-850 admitted.

"Listen, you said it yourself, you would stop having a purpose and become useless if John and Kate were to die so you can't let that happen, now fight it! You have a mission to complete so complete it, goddammit!" I shouted desperately.

"H-He's right...you know what you have to do...and you know my destiny...I have to live," John choked out.

The T-850 appeared to be fighting the TX's control as I was fully tense and scared of John dying, but then the T-850 threw John aside and I hurried over to check on him as he groaned in pain before we looked to see the T-850 starting to brutally slam his fists onto the hood of the car more than once as the engine was destroyed and the front axle of the car before the T-850 stopped moving.

That indicated that he shut himself down so John and I went to run over to Kate, who looked quite confused as to why the T-850 wasn't moving but the three of us ran to the plane regardless and got in before Kate started navigating the plane out of the hanger and onto the runway, then we took off into the air after getting enough speed and we began heading to Crystal Peak while I looked out the window tiredly.

"Okay, 015 degrees, 52 miles, and our max air speed's about 160," Kate informed me and John as the latter took out one of the C-4 charges.

"Okay, we got 32 minutes so it's just the three of us now," John replied as he started turning on the detonators.

"John, Adam, what if we can't stop it?" Kate wondered and I sighed.

"I'd say we don't have any problems since we have enough C-4 charges to take out a least ten supercomputers," I stated and John nodded.

"He's right, we're gonna make it, Kate. The future is up to us," John reassured her and Kate went back to focusing on flying the plane until I saw something when I looked out the window on my left.

"I see something below us, looks to be the entrance to a military bunker or something," I notified the others.

"That's got to be it," John said.

Kate started directing the plane to where the bunker was, flying over a fence with barbwire on it before we started descending to a dirt road as Kate safely landed us on the road, then we soon came to a stop in front of the entrance that had a couple of military trucks and a guard booth that was abandoned.

We got out of the plane and started running to the entrance before making it to a smaller door that was built into the entrance, making our way into the bunker as John pulled out the Glock 18 and we looked around to see military vehicles and other stuff that was left here for storage as Kate started to move forward but John stopped her.

"Skynet, so there may be more of them," John warned before stepping forward.

He raised the Glock 18 and fired at everything in front of us, the rapid gunfire sounding deafening in the enclosed space before John stopped firing and we waited to see if that would cause a reaction but there was nothing.

"Seems clear, but stay alert just in case," I told the others as John reloaded the Glock.

I raised my shotgun and we moved forward, John and I aiming around each corner or small space while Kate was right behind us as the three of us went to make our way to the massive blast door that was at the end of the room until we stopped in front of it and John placed his hand on it.

"I think this is some kind of blast door. There's no way we can blow through this thing," John said before I spotted what appeared to be a control panel and walked over to it.

"Here, I think this opens the blast door," I said and Kate joined me to grab the handle and pull down the panel to reveal a computer that was in standby mode.

"John, look," Kate said and John came over as the lights over the blast door turned on.

"I think we need a code to open the door so any ideas?" I asked just as something happened on the computer where 'blue 476' appeared on the screen.

"It's a...it's a code prompt," John said before removing his backpack and putting it on the ground, searching through it to take out a top-secret file and he flipped through the pages before finding a blue page and reading through it.

"Okay, type in...Dakota 775," John said and Kate typed in the code.

The screen started showing that the power was on and it switched to Red 176 so John looked through the file just as the sound of a helicopter was approaching, making us look at the entrance of the bunker just in time to see it getting smashed open by a helicopter that crashed its way through.

"Get back!" I shouted as the three of us quickly backed up.

The helicopter skidded to a stop and crashed into a vehicle before the door to the pilot's seat and the back door were sent flying, then my eyes widened when I saw the TX and TX-HA coming out of the wreck before starting to approach us menacingly.

"Get that door open, now!" I shouted urgently before raising my shotgun to aim at both machines.

I started firing to cover John and Kate who went back over to the computer and started imputing the next code, then an alarm started blaring just as I ran out of ammo for the shotgun and threw it away to take out my two handguns and fired those at the Skynet models that wanted us dead.

The blast door started opening slowly and John went to get his Glock 18 before assisting me by shooting at the homicidal machines as well, just as the sound of another helicopter started coming and a bigger one smashed through the entrance.

John ducked and I grabbed him to shield him from flying debris as we ran into a corner with Kate with the blast door still opening while the TX and TX-HA started running to escape the helicopter but it was moving too fast and they got ran over before being buried under it as loud screeching erupted.

The three of us were thrown to the ground and John and I shielded Kate from flying debris as the helicopter skidded to a stop with an explosion erupting behind it, then we went to get up and to see if it was over, seeing the burning wreck of the helicopter as the door was sent flying and the T-850 stepped out with his clothes being pretty torn up while most of the skin on his left side was missing as his red eye locked on us.

"I'm back," the T-850 said and I let out a sigh of relief since the last thing we needed was a third Skynet model after us.

Suddenly, the same alarm sounded out and we quickly looked at the computer to show that the sequence was aborting and that an emergency closure of the blast door was happening, prompting the T-850 to run to the closing blast door and diving below it to grab the door, stopping it just in time and he looked at us.

"Go, now!" the T-850 shouted and I nodded.

"Come on, let's go!" I yelled at John and Kate.

John went to grab his backpack just as the TX and TX-HA punched debris off of them, the two Skynet models missing their liquid metal sheaths as their endoskeletons were revealed but their legs were pinned while John, Kate, and I went to run over to the small opening under the blast door to crawl through it, Kate going first and I followed before John went last and looked at the T-850.

"Thank you," John said as I pulled his backpack to the other side.

"We'll meet again. Go!" the T-850 said urgently and John nodded.

He continued crawling through before I took his hands and started to pull him to the other side, but the TX and TX-HA grabbed his feet and he started letting out a scream of agony from the tight grip before the T-850 went to free his feet by breaking the TX's metal arm and sending his fist into the TX-HA's face.

The Skynet models were forced to let go as Kate helped me get John to the other side and we moved him down the tunnel as I passed him his backpack, the three of us moving as fast as we could while John limped and Kate and I held him upright.

Metallic roaring kept happening from behind us as we kept moving down the tunnel and it didn't take long until a deafening explosion happened behind us that shook the tunnel greatly, causing dust and a few pieces of rubble to come down while Kate fell and John grabbed her to make sure she didn't hit the ground face-first.

I also ducked and covered my head as the loud rumble died down before there was nothing but silence after that, then the three of us looked back and I knew the T-850, TX, and TX-HA were destroyed by the power cell so I felt a sense of relief.

"Come on, let's keep going," I said and we continued down the tunnel.

No words were exchanged between the three of us as we went through the tunnel and soon came across a secured door, just before John went to get it open and we stepped inside to find an elevator that would take us down.

"The elevator," John said before we headed into the elevator, then John slid the doors closed and Kate went to pull the lever until the elevator started to descend.

"I'm gonna set the detonator for five minutes, which should give us enough time to make it back up," John added as he started setting the detonator.

We continued going down for a little bit and I was mostly quiet with a dark and bitter look since I knew what would be waiting for us, just as the elevator finally came to a stop and John went to open the door before we stepped out and continued running.

We headed down a staircase and went through a hallway before entering a large nuclear fallout shelter command facility for military and government officials as John and Kate looked around in complete confusion.

"What is this place?" John wondered and I let out a scoff as we went down a staircase.

"It's a nuclear fallout shelter for military and government officials, so there's no core for Skynet here," I replied and John looked at me with wide eyes before frantically shaking his head.

"No, that's not possible," John said in complete denial before he started quickly limping to a room that had computers that hadn't been used in years while Kate started slowly wandering around.

"These computers are 30 years old. This isn't Skynet, there's nothing here. Oh god, Adam, you're right...this is a fallout shelter for VIPs, only they never got the warning. Goddammit, there's nothing here!" John shouted tearfully as he knocked an old computer over out of frustration.

"John, calm down," I reasoned as John paced and went to look at Kate.

"Why didn't he tell us? Why did he lead us down here?" John wondered while Kate was tearing up.

"To live...that was his mission," Kate said and I looked at John with a hollow expression.

"We were never meant to stop Judgment Day, only survive it. With the number of supplies in that massive storage room over there, you and Kate will be able to survive long enough for the nuclear fallout and radiation to clear up enough for it to be safe for us to get back up to the surface and get to work on creating the resistance to fight against Skynet," I explained as the detonator on the C-4 John was holding beeped and he looked down at it.

"There was never any stopping it," John said hopelessly as a few tears went down Kate's cheeks.

"John...we could just...let it go," Kate whimpered as I walked over to take the C-4 from John's hands and shut off the detonator.

"John, I know what you're feeling right now...there was a time where I was nothing, just by myself and content with letting those metal bastards win until one day, I encountered a resistance cell and they gave me a chance at fighting back, all because of you," I said as I pointed at John.

"I heard your broadcasts, telling us "The future is not set. There is no fate but what we make for ourselves". You gave me something I hadn't felt in a long time John…you gave me hope, just as you gave and taught the others, including your father.

You turned scavengers and survivors into militias and then militias into an army so we rose up, took up arms, and went to war, fighting for the hope of a tomorrow, John, you may have lost hope, but I didn't," I stated as I placed my hands on John's shoulders and looked at him.

"Neither did your mother or your father," I empathized as John took in every word, just as the nearby radio started receiving a transmission.

"Hello? Hello? Can somebody hear me? This is Montana Civil Defense. Somebody, please come in," the man said over the radio and I looked back at John.

"It's time, will you step up and give humanity the hope of a tomorrow by becoming the leader you were meant to be? Only you can make that choice, John. Whatever choice you make, it will decide the fate of the human race," I said before I stepped back.

John looked at the radio that was receiving different transmissions and then back at me while Kate rejoined us, and I just stood there waiting to see what John would do next so John hesitantly walked over to the radio with Kate before he went to respond.

"This is John Connor at Crystal Peak," John said.

"Connor? What the hell is happening? Who's in charge there?" the man inquired and John looked at me one more time so I sent him a nod and he returned his attention to the radio.

"I-I am," John replied, fully embracing his destiny as the future leader of the resistance.

Chatter broke out on the radio of military personnel asking for help while Kate and I went to rest our hands on his shoulders to support him before John took Kate's hand and they leaned against each other tiredly.

All we could do was ride out the nuclear fallout and once the radiation levels cleared up enough for it to be safe to go back up to the surface, we had work to do to ensure the survival of humanity but it'll take years if not decades to end Skynet's genocide.

The attack on humanity began at 6:18 PM just like the T-850 said it would...Judgment Day, the day the human race was nearly wiped from existence by the weapons they'd built to protect themselves. It's like I said, we were never meant to stop Judgment Day but merely survive it together.

I don't know what my future will be in this world but I do know one thing, I will never stop fighting and never give up until there's a time when future generations can live a life free of Skynet's path of destruction and for hope to succeed in such a dark time but until that time comes, the battle has just begun.

Chapter Text

My heart carries a piece of my fallen comrades, their memories fuel my resolve to live another day, to see an end to the fighting, to see an end to this war I am a part of...wise words indeed, and ones I've learned during my struggles in this world of man vs. machine.

The years had gone by as expected for the radiation fallout to die down enough for me, Kate, and John to go back up to the surface to see the devastation firsthand, and what was left of humanity was already fighting against Skynet as remnants of the military had gathered together to fight back against the AI that was responsible for the destruction of society and attempted genocide.

We met up with the head council of resistance leaders to assist them and they were interested in meeting us face to face after speaking to us over the radio for years to get the resistance formed, and John and I used our knowledge of Skynet to help them fight against it better.

They allowed us to join the resistance and we were assigned to a unit before I started making ammo consisting of the hardest metal alloys to easily punch through the armor of Skynet's troops, which gave the resistance an advantage that put the war in their favor but then the HK models started showing up, which made things more difficult for us.

Some scavengers signed up in the hopes of taking back our world from Skynet but it's been a hard one, and people were beginning to lose hope as the war continued to drag on but it was my experience and John's guidance that tried keeping the resistance together.

As for John and Kate, they had gotten into a relationship and were doing okay so I guess it's true when they say a shared trauma brings people together in the most unexpected of ways, though it was not until 2016 that some unknown signal started fucking with our comms.

We weren't expecting it and it was causing resistance members to start dying or getting scattered, so I was given the mission to find the signal and shut it down since it was theorized that it was a new weapon Skynet had created to gain an edge against us.

It was designated as the Ghost since it was very difficult to narrow down the source of the signal because it kept bouncing around, though imagine my surprise when Blair Williams was assigned to me and we were to find the source of the signal together.

Luckily, command had managed to figure out that the Ghost was somewhere in LA but they couldn't find its exact location so the only thing Blair and I could do was search the ruins of Los Angeles to find it.

I was now dressed in a black shirt with a red band tied on my right bicep to identify me as a member of the resistance, a black ball cap, a tactical vest with a shotgun rig, fingerless gloves, black cargo pants, and black boots while my weapons were an M4 that had different attachments, a holstered SPAS-12 with explosive rounds, and a Beretta M9 as Blair and I were moving through the cracked streets of LA.

"Clear," I said after aiming around a corner and we moved down another street.

Blair didn't talk much during the mission and I suppose it's because she would rather do things on her own, though we had orders and that could be why she wasn't putting up much of a fuss as we kept moving and then the static flared up on our comms again before we heard command coming through.

"Williams, Sullivan, this is command, over," the man said through the static, making us stop moving.

"Command, this is Williams and Sullivan, over," Blair replied.

"Have you two destroyed Ghost?" the man asked.

"Negative, we're still searching," I said stoically.

"You two have exceeded the deadline, the evac window has expired," the man told us and I looked displeased to hear that since it would mean that we might have to walk back, but it's not like I'm not used to that.

"Requesting alternate evac point," Blair said while crouching, only static blocked out whatever command was about to say.

"Shit, these comms are fucked," I muttered irritably until I got the sense that we were in danger.

I looked to my right and saw a T-7T approaching our location as Blair stood up, so I signaled for her to move and we hurried out of the machine's line of sight before running upstairs to take cover behind intact parts of what used to be walls.

The T-7T started scanning the area to locate us and we carefully moved but then it spotted us and started blasting at us with its guns, the heavy caliber rounds punching through the concrete walls as Blair and I moved from cover to cover.

Blair threw a frag grenade at the T-7T and the explosion destroyed it but I also fired a grenade round at it from the launcher on my rifle to make sure, and then we popped out of cover to aim at the remains of the Skynet model just in case it wasn't dead but it wasn't moving so it was dead and I reloaded the launcher on my rifle.

The noise was going to attract more Skynet patrols, so we needed to get out of the area as fast as we could. We hurried down the steps and ran down the streets while using wrecked cars for cover, heading into the ruins of a building when we heard another T-7T investigating the commotion from earlier.

It scanned the area while we moved through the building and darted to a car for cover, then we started taking fire and Blair blind-fired at it while I ran to a van as Blair loaded her rifle with a fresh mag, and I was about to shoot at the T-7T's red optic to disable it when a rocket shot down and destroyed the machine.

I ducked down and covered my head as debris and shrapnel rained down on me but I wasn't affected by it and aimed out at the remains of the Skynet model, then I regrouped with Blair and we looked up at the tall building where the rocket came from.

We heard a loud shout and saw a faint figure disappearing from a hole in the side of the building so we went to investigate since that didn't sound good, and the two of us moved through the crumbling hallways with our rifles raised since danger could be around any corner.

We headed up the stairs and made it to where our savior was, entering a large room with pillars as we kept our rifles raised while I watched our six now and then before the two of us took cover next to a corner and I aimed behind us to cover our six.

Blair tapped me on the shoulder to signal that she was moving and I was right behind her as we moved out of cover and watched our surroundings until we stopped and Blair aimed at a large hole above us.

"Hello? We're human, and with the resistance so please respond," Blair called out but there was no response.

We shared a wary look and cautiously moved up a part of a floor that acted as a ramp to the next level of the building, then I used my sensors to scan for any signs of movement but I suddenly picked up the sounds of somebody choking.

I signaled for Blair to stop and to listen, so she did and tensed up when she heard the noises and we moved slowly as we passed by flares that were still lit on the ground, aiming our rifles around while we moved through the room.

"Are you injured?" I called out but the choking noises didn't stop.

It sounded like they were coming from behind a wall so we moved carefully to the source of the sounds and slowly turned around the corner, then we saw our savior but he was being held up in the air by a T-600, the Skynet model gripping the man's neck.

It turned its head to look at us and Blair and I glared back at it tensely before the T-600 threw the man, who flew into a crumbling piece of wall and died on impact so Blair and I immediately fled the T-600 that started shooting at us with its minigun.

We quickly took cover and I tossed a frag at the T-600 and Blair followed up with one of her own, causing two major explosions but that didn't kill the Skynet model since it was still shooting at our cover so we started running as it was about to come around the corner.

We hurried down the stairs and ran through a hallway as the T-600 continued pursuing us, and I spun around to fire a grenade round at the machine before it was sent flying through a wall from the explosion, so Blair and I took the opportunity to flee the building and escape the area before it could recover.

We kept running and found a way underground as I thought about how that was the first time a T-600 showed up, so Skynet was starting development into the Terminator series and that was going to cause problems in the near future.

Either way, Blair and I slowed down and walked now that we weren't in any more danger but we still stayed cautious since letting your guard down would get you killed in this environment as we arrived at a former subway station where scavengers were using it as shelter to hide from the machines, and they started staring at us warily and distrustfully.

"Stay away! You two will bring them down here!" a female scavenger shouted as we passed her, indicating that we weren't welcome in this place.

"The war is everywhere, can't hide from it," Blair responded cooly.

"Fighting is worthless, just people dying for nothing," the scavenger retorted bitterly.

"They die for you, but if you feel so strongly about it, then make their deaths mean something instead of just sitting there and blaming us for it," I stated stoically as Blair and I kept walking.

We continued moving through the subway station as the static appeared on our comms again so we looked around but didn't see anything suspicious, though we jumped down the platform and started going through the subway tunnel.

We moved through it for a while and eventually heard metallic movement so we started jogging and made it to another subway station, climbing onto the platform and running to an abandoned train before darting inside to take cover.

I peered over to look through the broken window and nearly swore out loud when I saw a few T-7T showing up, at least 4 of them and we didn't have enough ammo or explosives to deal with them but we started taking fire and were forced to keep our heads down.

"Fuck!" I shouted in alarm as the wrecked train kept getting hammered by bullets.

Suddenly, the static on our comms started getting more intense until one of the T-7Ts started malfunctioning and blasting at the other machines, prompting Blair and I to take advantage of that to toss out two frags to destroy them.

"What the hell just happened?" Blair wondered as we stood up.

"I'm not sure, but I have a feeling the Ghost is responsible for that," I replied as the static on our comms continued.

It seemed clearer than before so we must be close to the source, and Blair and I started heading over to another train car that seemed mostly intact while my scanners picked up an unknown signal coming from inside.

Blair and I stacked up, the two of us sharing a nod before peering in and seeing somebody inside as he was doing something with a bunch of electronics that were functioning, and my scanners picked up the source of the signal coming from them as Blair and I entered the train car to aim at the stranger.

"It's you," Blair said with a look of surprise before she and I moved cautiously to the stranger with our rifles raised just in case he was armed and not friendly.

"Get out of here," the stranger told us.

"You're the Ghost, the one who has been fucking up our comms lately," I said with narrowed eyes.

"The Ghost? That's original," the stranger scoffed.

"You can hack the machines," Blair said and the stranger sighed.

"I didn't do that for you two," the stranger replied before shutting off the signal and turning to face us, the man looking like he was in his mid to late twenties at least while he had long brown hair and was wearing dirty and slightly ripped clothes, though it was the rifle in his hands that had me on guard.

"Go!" the man snapped.

"Not happening, your little project is fucking up our comms and getting our people killed, and you really expect us to leave and let you keep doing that?" I questioned with a stern glare.

"We're all dead, anyway," the man stated and Blair scowled.

"Give us one reason why we shouldn't blow your head off right here," Blair threatened coldly.

"Because you two would be no better than them," the man pointed out.

"Regardless, what you're doing is causing us problems so you're coming with us," I declared just before gunfire erupted nearby.

Screams of fear and agony were happening in the distance so sounded like Skynet found that scavenger camp and its troops were massacring everyone, making us all look back to see two scavengers falling down the nearby steps and a T-600 was coming.

"Shut it down! Shut it down now!" Blair demanded as the man went to fiddle with his electronics.

"I can't, Skynet squashed it," the man replied tensely and started mumbling under his breath.

"Fuck it," I growled before Blair and I ran out of the train car.

We started taking fire from the T-600 and ducked into the cabin on the train car, then Blair went to attempt to start it up while I laid down cover fire and the T-600 started getting damaged from my specialized bullets.

Thankfully, Blair got the subway train started and we started moving away from the platform, rushing through the tunnel as the train picked up speed and we hurried back to the man just as a Moto-terminator started appearing and I swore loudly.

"Hey, we got company!" I shouted before running to where what used to be the back of the train and firing at the Moto-terminator.

"We're dead!" the man yelled in a panic as Blair joined me in shooting at the Moto-terminator, which was firing its guns at us.

"We're not going to die, now return fire!" I yelled as my shots damaged the Moto-terminator.

"You wanted to kill me?! You should've done it back there!" the man added as he and Blair grabbed a couple of RPGs, just before a second Moto-terminator appeared and shot at us.

"We're not letting you off that easy!" Blair shouted as she fired a rocket, which destroyed one of the Moto-terminators.

"We're taking you to command, maybe they'll figure out what to do with you!" I yelled while Blair reloaded the RPG and fired it at the second Moto-terminator.

That one got destroyed as a third Moto-terminator showed up and shot at us so I aimed at one of its tires and shot at it, hitting the tire and causing the Skynet model to spin out of control before a rocket from Blair destroyed it.

Aerostats showed up and that wasn't good since they'd alert a Harvester, which would be really bad so I started focusing my fire on them as my targeting sensors allowed me to take them down one at a time with expert marksmanship.

Once the threat was gone, I hurried to the front of the train and saw that we were about to head out of the tunnels. It was dark, so night must have fallen while we were in there, but that didn't matter since I saw that the track was broken, and my eyes widened in alarm.

"Everybody, hold on back there!" I shouted before bracing for impact, then the train was knocked off the rails and I held onto the console as it skidded and turned onto its side before coming to a stop and there was dead silence.

Chapter Text

"Blair, you okay back there?" I asked while leaving the cabin of the train car.

"I'm good," Blair replied as I jogged around to the side of the train and went to check on the stranger, who was sitting on the ground while Blair was busy keeping an eye open.

"How about you? Are you good?" I questioned.

"I think so," the stranger said before I reached my hand down to help him stand.

"Good, because we need to get the hell out of here. Every single Skynet patrol in the surrounding area will be showing up to investigate the commotion, so we don't want to be here when they arrive," I pointed out.

As I said that, we picked up the sound of familiar heavy footsteps from a T-600, and that prompted the three of us to take cover against the train car, waiting for the right moment to sneak away from it, as my eyes were hard.

"What is that thing?" the stranger whispered.

"A machine, bipedal, slow as hell, but kills like a tank," Blair replied quietly before I glanced at the stranger.

"Hey, do you think you can do what you did before back in the subway?" I inquired.

"Don't know, I need the right gear, and you two destroyed mine," the stranger admitted before we snuck away as the T-600 was getting closer.

We moved quickly and quietly as I heard the T-600 searching for us, the three of us taking cover behind a wrecked car, and waited as I used my scanners to examine the environment that could be used against the bulky machine.

I spotted two red oil barrels in the back of an old pickup and tapped Blair on the shoulder to get her attention, pointing out the barrels, and she nodded before we waited for the T-600 to get close enough to the barrels.

Once it was close enough, we popped up to aim at the barrels before shooting them, causing them to explode, and the explosion heavily damaged the T-600 before the three of us took off running down the street.

Eventually, we ducked into a building and started making our way through it as I kept my eyes and ears open for any possible ambushes before we moved even deeper into the building until the stranger, who we now know is named Laz, after I asked for his name, stopped to lean against one pillar.

"Are we safe?" Laz wondered before Blair aimed her rifle at him.

"Sullivan and I are...they told us there were people like you out there, never thought we'd meet one," Blair said.

"What is it that you both think I am?" Laz questioned, and my eyes narrowed.

"What do you think? A human collaborator, someone who allied himself with the machines," I said before Laz turned to face us with a dark glare.

"You have no idea what you're talking about," Laz countered darkly as Blair and I approached him.

"How do you know so much about them?" Blair interrogated.

"Because I'm not some military kill freak looking to bomb the world to hell," Laz replied.

"That remains to be seen, because your words aren't going to fully convince us you aren't one of those fucking traitors who would rather sell out humanity just to save themselves," I stated coldly.

"You know nothing...the two of you come down there and almost get torn apart, and then destroy everything I have. Besides, you're the ones pointing a gun at a human," Laz retorted.

"Our orders are to eliminate the disruption," Blair said before Laz scoffed.

"You even talk like a machine...you pull that trigger, and you're nothing but," Laz stated.

"Have you ever heard the stories of what command does to people like you? I'm sure you have, even in your hole," I said before Laz turned away and tripped, causing him to fire his rifle unintentionally in the direction of our right.

Blair instinctively jumped to the side, and I ducked before we aimed our rifles at Laz, who was trying to escape, so we chased after him just in time to see him taking fire from a T-7T, and he used a van for cover while shooting back and using different wrecked vehicles for cover.

We watched Laz fight for his life, and there was no question that he was going to get killed, just as another T-7T showed up before I came to the conclusion that we had to save him since every life is sacred, and we would be no better than Skynet if we just left him to die.

With that in mind, I ran out of the building while Laz was getting cornered, Blair following me as we both fired at the machines, and one of them was destroyed after I targeted its weak point from behind until we took cover, just as the other T-7T fired its guns at us.

I moved around as Blair laid down some cover fire to keep it busy before I wound up behind the Skynet model. Then, I shot its weakness, and it exploded until Blair and I stood up, now that it was clear, and walked over to Laz, who appeared confused and bewildered that we had saved his life.

"Why did you do that?" Laz questioned as he stood up.

"You're an asset, so you can be ours and live, or you can stay out here and die," Blair replied.

"Also, human life is sacred nowadays. Too many people have died, and I don't want another body on my conscience," I added before Blair and I started walking down the street, prompting Laz to follow us.

We kept walking through the ruins of LA, and it was quiet between the three of us while I glanced around for any signs of Skynet troops, though we hadn't encountered any yet, and I was glad we didn't as we walked past a few wrecked vehicles, coming to a stop in front of a building once we heard a voice coming from nearby.

"This way," Blair told Laz before the three of us went down another cracked street in the direction of the voice.

As we kept walking, the voice started getting louder, and it sounded like it was coming from a radio of some kind. As we got closer, we soon came across a crashed fighter jet, before Blair called out to the pilot just in case he or she was still alive.

"Let's check the wreckage, see if anyone's still alive," I said as we approached the jet, beginning to examine it for any signs of life, until we saw the dead pilot inside the jet, and I let out a sigh while Blair rubbed the back of her head.

"He's dead for sure," Laz pointed out before Blair stood up.

"You're killing innocent resistance fighters," Blair snapped, and Laz narrowed his eyes.

"I didn't crash this plane," Laz retorted defensively.

"Even if you aren't a collaborator, your project is causing a shitload of problems we don't need, and it's making things harder on us," I pointed out before Laz let out a stressful sigh.

"All I knew was that the algorithm bought me some time with those things. The blackouts were just a byproduct, uncontrollable. You can't separate two systems at their core, because they're the same thing," Laz explained, and Blair scoffed.

"Oh, can the hacker theory. Innocent people are dying because of you," Blair growled before I started looking annoyed.

"Look, as lovely as this conversation is, we'd better get out of here before Skynet patrols show up," I suggested, prompting the three of us to leave the crash site while I made a mental note to inform command about the dead pilot once we were back at base so that they could send in a unit to retrieve the body for a proper burial.

We continued walking for a while, a subtle yet noticeable tension occurring between Blair and Laz after the argument they had, but I was more focused on us making it back to base as we kept walking and soon came to a stop in front of a crumbling building that was up ahead.

"What a waste, you could've been a fighter, a member of the resistance, but instead you sabotage us," Blair said darkly as she went to investigate some of the rubble, and Laz started glaring at her.

"You don't know anything about me," Laz growled, but then he started breathing heavily, and he didn't look good.

"I know that you could be valuable, but you don't care what you destroy," Blair said while I went to check on Laz.

"You're suffering from dehydration, here," I offered as I went to take out my canteen that was full of cool, clean water, holding it out for Laz before he took it and started gulping down the water.

"Careful, take small sips. We don't have a lot of water, so we need to conserve it," I stated, and Laz slowed down before handing back the canteen.

"Um...thanks," Laz said hesitantly before I put my canteen away.

"If we don't look out for each other in this environment, then what's the point of surviving this hell? Come on, we should keep moving," I pointed out before Laz wiped his forehead that was sweaty.

"You're right, I like to tear things apart, break down the system. The resistance thinks that if we just bomb the hell out of these things, we will be alright. You fire everything you got, you walk away, and you learn nothing.

You know nothing about your enemy," Laz muttered as he went to take a seat on the ground, the man looking exhausted.

"How old were you when it happened?" Blair asked.

"Twelve...they took everything from me. The resistance wants everyone to fight a war they started," Laz said, and I sighed.

"Look, I don't claim that the resistance is perfect since they aren't, but we're not the ones who started this hell. Skynet was the one who launched the nukes first, not us. We're just trying to survive and make the best with what we have.

Everybody's lost someone, doesn't mean that we should be blamed for it," I pointed out logically before holding out a hand, just before Laz took my hand, and I helped him stand until we continued walking for a bit.

"Only knowing what you're told is an ugly trait. Open your eyes, it's all the same thing," Laz said bitterly.

"The resistance is nothing like Skynet," Blair replied.

"It wasn't always like that," Laz admitted before we came to a stop in front of a resistance outpost, and I glanced back at him.

"Well, you'll soon see for yourself. This is the outpost," I said before we headed to the front door.

We went into the building and froze at the sight of dead resistance soldiers, most of them riddled with bullet holes, and I swore under my breath since this was the worst thing that could've happened, as gunfire and screams were happening nearby.

The noises stopped, so that couldn't be a good sign, though the three of us walked through the building in the hopes of finding any survivors as we passed by more bodies that had been killed by Skynet, and then we soon found one resistance soldier who was badly injured and sitting against a counter.

"They're...looking for something..." the soldier gurgled as blood oozed out of his mouth until he died, and I scowled.

"Shit, he's gone," I muttered before Blair and I looked at Laz, who glanced away with a slight look of guilt on his face.

Regardless, there was nothing we could do for the dead resistance soldiers, so we started checking the place and the bodies for supplies before getting more ammo, food, and water until we headed up to the roof to contact command.

"Command, this is Sullivan. The outpost has sustained massive casualties, requesting evac," I reported, just before aerostats suddenly showed up and started firing at us.

We quickly took cover and kept our heads low to avoid getting shot before popping up and shooting back at the aerostats, destroying a few with well-placed shots as I noticed the nearby M2 Browning that was set up.

I slung my rifle and rushed over to the machine gun, seeing it still loaded, before I racked it and turned it to fire at the aerostats, which destroyed a few before I saw a few T-600s showing up in the streets below us, so I turned the Browning to fire at them.

"Command, this is Williams! We are under heavy fire, delay evac! The area is too hot!" Blair shouted while the T-600s fired their miniguns at us.

"Hey, can you shut them down?!" I shouted to Laz, who ran over to a computer.

"I've never tried with a 600, but we'll see!" Laz replied loudly while I ducked from the rounds flying at my head.

"Just do what you can!" I yelled before refocusing my attention on the T-600s.

I continued firing while my teeth were clenching and my face was fixed into a scowl, glaring at the humanoid machines that were trying to turn us into swiss cheese, but minigun fire started erupting behind me and Blair.

It forced me to look back to see that a T-600 had made it up to the roof, but it was malfunctioning and firing into the air before I spun around with my SPAS-12 out and started blasting it, the explosive shells causing heavy damage until it blew up while the other T-600s were malfunctioning and shut down.

Once it was turned into scrap, I put away my shotgun and took out my rifle as the three of us ran over to the edge and looked down to see an old truck that had makeshift armor with a machine gun in the back and was still functioning, prompting us to jump down on top of it.

"So, that worked. How much time do we have?" Blair asked while she went to climb into the back.

"Thirty seconds, maybe," Laz replied as he and I got into the truck.

"It should be enough time for us to get some distance," I said before Laz started the truck, and we started speeding away from the outpost while swerving into different streets until an aerial appeared above us.

"Fuck, aerial!" I yelled in alarm, just as the HK model fired its weapons, and I knew things just got harder for us.