Hope For The Future (3/3) - Secret Santa for TLI
Title: Hope For The Future (3/3)
Author: knitekat
Word Count: 1594 out of 5475
Characters: James Lester, Stephan Hart, (Hilary Becker, Jenny Lewis, Jess Parker)
Rating: 12
Disclaimer: Primeval belongs to Impossible Pictures. Certainly not me. Writing for fun and will replace.
A/N: For TLI's secret santa and her prompts: 1) Coming home for Christmas; 2) 'X' marks the spot; 3) Movie night and 4) Anything set post series. Hope you're having a wonderful Christmas.
A/N 2: Thanks go to the wonderful Fififolle for the beta. All remaining mistakes are mine.
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3
I blinked at him, my mind skidding to a stop at his words as I felt the tension in my chest ease for the first time since Anderson had informed me about his doppelgänger's warning. However, all I said was, “Oh?”
“Look,” Hart said as he thrust Helen's journal almost under my nose.
“Do please calm down, Hart,” I murmured as I took the book and read the entry he had jabbed his finger at. The words Helen had written chilled my blood, not just for the events she described but for her cold-hearted reaction to those events. I had wanted to find out what had caused the end of the world and it appeared as if Helen had provided us with the equivalent of a treasure map with a large red 'X' marks the spot on it.
“We have to stop him!” Hart demanded when I had read quietly for several moments.
“No, Hart, we don't.”
“What!” Hart was on his feet, his hands clenched into fists as he glared at me. “You...”
“Hart!” I refused to shout, but was pleased that my cold tone had the required effect. “I assume you didn't read the following entries?” I didn't wait for him to shake his head, his reaction had already answered that question. “If you had, you would have seen that someone else took over the project when Helen killed him. Whatever Helen tried, whoever Helen killed, the same or similar events still occurred and the end still came. At best, she delayed the end by a few decades. At worse....” I shook my head, not wanting to think about what I had read.
“So, what do we do? Nothing?” Hart folded his arms and continued to glare at me.
“No, Dr Hart. We examine Helen's twisted writings and learn all we can about this event.”
“And then?”
“We do something Helen never thought of.” I smiled at him.
“Which is?”
“We bide our time and examine this from all angles before we make the decisive move which will kill that project and discredit anyone involved in it.”
“And that will save the world?” Hart sounded sceptical and I couldn't blame him.
“It might,” I conceded. “I doubt it could make it worse.”
“We could tell everyone what happens and...” Hart began, his voice trailing off when I shook my head. “Why not?”
“Because someone would still try, they wouldn't believe that they would destroy the world. I believe it is called hubris.” I ignored Hart and re-read Helen's words, devouring them as I sought every clue they contained. Finally I put the journal down, now convinced we held the key to saving the world, to give my children their future back. All I had to do was see events for myself, and Helen had kindly listed the time and place the end began, and figure out how to stop it. I wasn't foolish enough - or suffering from hubris - to consider I could do it alone. No, Hart would aid me and my people at the ARC, not all of them, of course, just the ones I trusted. Temple would be ideal, the boy was a genius and had learnt his lesson to keep his mouth shut. I would have to be careful who to trust, secrecy would be paramount if we were to save the world.
Once I had explained my plan to Hart, who snorted that 'Connor would love to be part of a conspiracy', I finally gained his agreement to visit and witness the events which led to the end of the world, to see for ourselves what really happened. It took several days for us to muddle our way though Helen's notes and figure out how to open an anomaly to the right (or wrong as Hart had muttered more than once) place.
The devastation was terrible, but I now knew what had caused the end of the world. I also knew I had to wait for the right moment to strike, that I might have to trust whoever succeeded me as Director of the ARC to make the right choice, for it might not be the current ARC team who saved the world. I smiled as I remembered that my children had been fascinated by my work once the anomalies had become public knowledge, maybe it was time to put Jurassic Park back on the list for movie night.
I noticed Hart looked shattered when we returned to Helen's lair and, well, he might think I was a heartless government hatchet-man, but I couldn't leave Hart here by himself. He was far too useful for saving the world for that. “What will you do now?”
“Hmm?” Hart mumbled almost inaudibly.
“What are your plans?” I repeated, pausing for a moment as if the idea had only just occurred to me. “You could always come back with me.”
“Back to the ARC?” Hart sounded incredulous. “You'd employ me even after everything?”
“After a thorough check to make sure you are who you say you are and a few other precautions.” When Hart didn't respond, I added, “It's got to be better than sitting here doing nothing... and maybe, you'll even manage to save the world.” This time was better left unsaid, even if Hart's glare meant he'd heard it.
***
I stepped through the anomaly Hart had promised me would take me back home. My gaze flickered around for any sign of danger and my finger was on the trigger of my borrowed weapon. I frowned when I came face-to-muzzle with the ARC security forces, only relaxing minutely after I had closely examined their patches to ensure they were from my ARC. My eyebrow quirked as I waited for a response from them, preferably, one where they weren't pointing their guns at me.
“Sir?” Becker asked as he, to my great relief, pointed his shotgun towards the ground. “What year is it, sir?”
“Shouldn't I be asking that question?” I asked, rechecking their uniforms and faces to confirm they were from my ARC.
Before Becker could respond, the anomaly ripped behind me and I remembered that no one in my teams had ever obeyed orders. I bit back a sigh when Becker's gun rose, thankfully no longer directed in my direction. “Stand down, Captain.”
“Sir?” Becker said, his voice cautious, as if worried about my reaction to his words. “Stephen Hart is dead.”
At least that confirmed I was in the right timeline... and that was obviously what Becker was concerned about. “I do know that, Captain.”
“Then...”
“Helen, of course.” I paused, glancing towards Hart. “Although, it would be wise to run a full check on Dr Hart.”
Hart didn't look pleased, but he didn't appear keen to challenge the number of guns pointing at him. “I don't have a choice, do I?”
“Not really,” I agreed before turning back to Becker, my eyebrow quirking at the sight of Temple's anomaly locking device. “Temple's managed to fix the locker?”
“Mostly, sir,” Becker replied. “He's 'ironing out the kinks', sir.”
“I see,” I muttered as I noticed the additions to the anomaly locker, it rather resembled the devices Temple used to construct when he first joined the project. “Keep some of your men on guard until it closes, Captain.” I ignored Becker rolling his eyes at my order, it had been a rather obvious one to give. “And what about the ADD?”
“It is intermittent,” Becker said. “It located this one, but missed the one yesterday.”
***
What surprised me the most on my return to the ARC was the presence of one Ms Jenny Lewis and I felt a momentary flutter of panic that I wasn't really home. “Ms Lewis?”
“The minister begged me to return until we located you, James,” Ms Lewis informed me and I wondered if she had detected my worry and was attempting to calm me. If so, I damned her sharp eyes and thanked her decorum for not revealing the crack in my facade.
“Excellent,” I proclaimed, my mind already seeing a way to resurrect Hart now I had access to Ms Lewis' skills once more. I really would have to see about convincing her to stay, especially in this public era of the anomaly project. But first... I almost yelped when I was suddenly accosted from behind. I twisted free, my heart pounding until I recognised one brightly coloured and far too chipper Ms Parker grinning at me.
“And you're back just in time for Christmas.”
“Ms Parker,” I admonished, seeing the smirk on Hart's face fade as he too was engulfed in a hug. I supposed I could accept it for once, Ms Parker always got rather carried away at Christmas time. Besides, I was in a magnanimous mood and decided my staff should enjoy Christmas. The real work would start in the New Year and they deserved a rest before Hart and I dropped our bombshell upon them. So, instead of the expected snark, I said, “Merry Christmas,” and left my staff looking shell-shocked.
“James?” Ms Lewis said, an edge of worry in her voice at my uncharacteristic response.
“I'm going to spend Christmas with my children, Ms Lewis,” I informed her. “After that, the real work to save the world begins. I do hope you'll consider rejoining the ARC.” I gave an exasperated sigh at the uneasy looks my staff exchanged and realised I would have to explain what had happened through the anomaly. “Fine,” I muttered. “We will meet in one hour and Hart and I will explain everything.”
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3
Author: knitekat
Word Count: 1594 out of 5475
Characters: James Lester, Stephan Hart, (Hilary Becker, Jenny Lewis, Jess Parker)
Rating: 12
Disclaimer: Primeval belongs to Impossible Pictures. Certainly not me. Writing for fun and will replace.
A/N: For TLI's secret santa and her prompts: 1) Coming home for Christmas; 2) 'X' marks the spot; 3) Movie night and 4) Anything set post series. Hope you're having a wonderful Christmas.
A/N 2: Thanks go to the wonderful Fififolle for the beta. All remaining mistakes are mine.
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3
I blinked at him, my mind skidding to a stop at his words as I felt the tension in my chest ease for the first time since Anderson had informed me about his doppelgänger's warning. However, all I said was, “Oh?”
“Look,” Hart said as he thrust Helen's journal almost under my nose.
“Do please calm down, Hart,” I murmured as I took the book and read the entry he had jabbed his finger at. The words Helen had written chilled my blood, not just for the events she described but for her cold-hearted reaction to those events. I had wanted to find out what had caused the end of the world and it appeared as if Helen had provided us with the equivalent of a treasure map with a large red 'X' marks the spot on it.
“We have to stop him!” Hart demanded when I had read quietly for several moments.
“No, Hart, we don't.”
“What!” Hart was on his feet, his hands clenched into fists as he glared at me. “You...”
“Hart!” I refused to shout, but was pleased that my cold tone had the required effect. “I assume you didn't read the following entries?” I didn't wait for him to shake his head, his reaction had already answered that question. “If you had, you would have seen that someone else took over the project when Helen killed him. Whatever Helen tried, whoever Helen killed, the same or similar events still occurred and the end still came. At best, she delayed the end by a few decades. At worse....” I shook my head, not wanting to think about what I had read.
“So, what do we do? Nothing?” Hart folded his arms and continued to glare at me.
“No, Dr Hart. We examine Helen's twisted writings and learn all we can about this event.”
“And then?”
“We do something Helen never thought of.” I smiled at him.
“Which is?”
“We bide our time and examine this from all angles before we make the decisive move which will kill that project and discredit anyone involved in it.”
“And that will save the world?” Hart sounded sceptical and I couldn't blame him.
“It might,” I conceded. “I doubt it could make it worse.”
“We could tell everyone what happens and...” Hart began, his voice trailing off when I shook my head. “Why not?”
“Because someone would still try, they wouldn't believe that they would destroy the world. I believe it is called hubris.” I ignored Hart and re-read Helen's words, devouring them as I sought every clue they contained. Finally I put the journal down, now convinced we held the key to saving the world, to give my children their future back. All I had to do was see events for myself, and Helen had kindly listed the time and place the end began, and figure out how to stop it. I wasn't foolish enough - or suffering from hubris - to consider I could do it alone. No, Hart would aid me and my people at the ARC, not all of them, of course, just the ones I trusted. Temple would be ideal, the boy was a genius and had learnt his lesson to keep his mouth shut. I would have to be careful who to trust, secrecy would be paramount if we were to save the world.
Once I had explained my plan to Hart, who snorted that 'Connor would love to be part of a conspiracy', I finally gained his agreement to visit and witness the events which led to the end of the world, to see for ourselves what really happened. It took several days for us to muddle our way though Helen's notes and figure out how to open an anomaly to the right (or wrong as Hart had muttered more than once) place.
The devastation was terrible, but I now knew what had caused the end of the world. I also knew I had to wait for the right moment to strike, that I might have to trust whoever succeeded me as Director of the ARC to make the right choice, for it might not be the current ARC team who saved the world. I smiled as I remembered that my children had been fascinated by my work once the anomalies had become public knowledge, maybe it was time to put Jurassic Park back on the list for movie night.
I noticed Hart looked shattered when we returned to Helen's lair and, well, he might think I was a heartless government hatchet-man, but I couldn't leave Hart here by himself. He was far too useful for saving the world for that. “What will you do now?”
“Hmm?” Hart mumbled almost inaudibly.
“What are your plans?” I repeated, pausing for a moment as if the idea had only just occurred to me. “You could always come back with me.”
“Back to the ARC?” Hart sounded incredulous. “You'd employ me even after everything?”
“After a thorough check to make sure you are who you say you are and a few other precautions.” When Hart didn't respond, I added, “It's got to be better than sitting here doing nothing... and maybe, you'll even manage to save the world.” This time was better left unsaid, even if Hart's glare meant he'd heard it.
***
I stepped through the anomaly Hart had promised me would take me back home. My gaze flickered around for any sign of danger and my finger was on the trigger of my borrowed weapon. I frowned when I came face-to-muzzle with the ARC security forces, only relaxing minutely after I had closely examined their patches to ensure they were from my ARC. My eyebrow quirked as I waited for a response from them, preferably, one where they weren't pointing their guns at me.
“Sir?” Becker asked as he, to my great relief, pointed his shotgun towards the ground. “What year is it, sir?”
“Shouldn't I be asking that question?” I asked, rechecking their uniforms and faces to confirm they were from my ARC.
Before Becker could respond, the anomaly ripped behind me and I remembered that no one in my teams had ever obeyed orders. I bit back a sigh when Becker's gun rose, thankfully no longer directed in my direction. “Stand down, Captain.”
“Sir?” Becker said, his voice cautious, as if worried about my reaction to his words. “Stephen Hart is dead.”
At least that confirmed I was in the right timeline... and that was obviously what Becker was concerned about. “I do know that, Captain.”
“Then...”
“Helen, of course.” I paused, glancing towards Hart. “Although, it would be wise to run a full check on Dr Hart.”
Hart didn't look pleased, but he didn't appear keen to challenge the number of guns pointing at him. “I don't have a choice, do I?”
“Not really,” I agreed before turning back to Becker, my eyebrow quirking at the sight of Temple's anomaly locking device. “Temple's managed to fix the locker?”
“Mostly, sir,” Becker replied. “He's 'ironing out the kinks', sir.”
“I see,” I muttered as I noticed the additions to the anomaly locker, it rather resembled the devices Temple used to construct when he first joined the project. “Keep some of your men on guard until it closes, Captain.” I ignored Becker rolling his eyes at my order, it had been a rather obvious one to give. “And what about the ADD?”
“It is intermittent,” Becker said. “It located this one, but missed the one yesterday.”
***
What surprised me the most on my return to the ARC was the presence of one Ms Jenny Lewis and I felt a momentary flutter of panic that I wasn't really home. “Ms Lewis?”
“The minister begged me to return until we located you, James,” Ms Lewis informed me and I wondered if she had detected my worry and was attempting to calm me. If so, I damned her sharp eyes and thanked her decorum for not revealing the crack in my facade.
“Excellent,” I proclaimed, my mind already seeing a way to resurrect Hart now I had access to Ms Lewis' skills once more. I really would have to see about convincing her to stay, especially in this public era of the anomaly project. But first... I almost yelped when I was suddenly accosted from behind. I twisted free, my heart pounding until I recognised one brightly coloured and far too chipper Ms Parker grinning at me.
“And you're back just in time for Christmas.”
“Ms Parker,” I admonished, seeing the smirk on Hart's face fade as he too was engulfed in a hug. I supposed I could accept it for once, Ms Parker always got rather carried away at Christmas time. Besides, I was in a magnanimous mood and decided my staff should enjoy Christmas. The real work would start in the New Year and they deserved a rest before Hart and I dropped our bombshell upon them. So, instead of the expected snark, I said, “Merry Christmas,” and left my staff looking shell-shocked.
“James?” Ms Lewis said, an edge of worry in her voice at my uncharacteristic response.
“I'm going to spend Christmas with my children, Ms Lewis,” I informed her. “After that, the real work to save the world begins. I do hope you'll consider rejoining the ARC.” I gave an exasperated sigh at the uneasy looks my staff exchanged and realised I would have to explain what had happened through the anomaly. “Fine,” I muttered. “We will meet in one hour and Hart and I will explain everything.”
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3