Fic - Winds of Change (part 3)
Title: Winds of Change
Author: prehistoriccat
Rating: PG
Characters: Matt Anderson (as a child) Gideon Anderson, Katie (OC)
Genre: Gen, backstory, angst
Disclaimer: Canon characters are not mine, no copyright intended, but the OCs are mine to do with as I please!
A/N: This is the third part of my Matt backstory, set approx 100 years in the future.
Part one is HERE
Part two is HERE
The rebellion had stormed the government facility and allowed the Predators to enter, killing virtually everyone inside - including Gideon's scientist wife, Siobhan. Amongst the survivors are Matthew, a baby that Gideon had rescued after a Predator attack and Katie, a baby belonging to one of the other soldiers. Gideon has now fled with the children in search of safety and the future for young Matthew is about to be mapped out.
“Matty?”
“Go back to sleep!”
“But, Matty, I want to help...” Katie pulled back the blanket and blinked in the dim light. This was becoming a regular occurrence and she was worried.
“I'm fine, just go back to sleep.” Matthew snapped at her, more from embarrassment at being caught than anything else. He was ten years old, practically a man, they kept telling him. If they knew he was wetting the bed because of the nightmares he'd been having, he'd be ridiculed and his life would become even more unbearable. He angrily pulled the sodden sheet from his mattress and attempted to fold it. Katie was at his side by now, trying to take the sheet from him. He gave in and let her help him, but he couldn't look her in the eyes.
“We should wash this,” Katie said softly. “This is the third time in two weeks, it'll smell and they'll know you're wetting the bed.”
“I know, but how do I wash it without dad finding out?”
“We'll say it's mine. Put my dry sheet on your bed and I'll say I had an accident.”
“I can't let you lie for me, Katie.”
She placed her hand on his shoulder and smiled. “It doesn't matter to me. They think I'm just a kid anyway.” She then moved to her own bed and pulled off the sheet, ready to place it on Matthew's mattress. He watched her smooth it over and tuck it in and then he sat down on the bed, motioning for her to join him. As she sat down, he pulled the blanket around both of them and Katie nestled herself against his body.
After several minutes silence, Katie decided it was time she got some answers. “You had another bad dream didn't you?” Matthew nodded. “What was it about? You can tell me.”
“It doesn't matter.”
“Yes it does. I have to share a room with you. If you're going to keep waking me up like this, then don't I at least deserve an explanation?”
Matthew nodded again and sighed. She was right; she did deserve an explanation. She may only be seven years old, but she had witnessed and experienced just as much as he had. If anyone would understand, it would be her. “Do you remember my birthday?”
“Course I do! They said that now you were almost a man you could start to learn to be one. I was afraid they'd split us up.” Katie bit her bottom lip. She'd never admitted that before.
Matthew slipped his hand into hers and squeezed it. “I won't let them, Katie. You and I stick together, no matter what. I thought being with the soldiers would be cool, but it's not. I don't want to fight.”
“Is that what's wrong? Is that why you're having bad dreams?” Matthew blinked and nodded. “Then you have to tell dad, Matty. There's other things you can do; that we can both do. You don't have to be a soldier.”
“I can't. It's dad that wants me to learn how to be a soldier. He told me things. He says there's something important I have to do and I have to be prepared for it.”
“Like what?”
Matthew leaned back and closed his eyes. He remembered every detail of the meeting and it scared the hell out of him. He'd always known that Gideon was not his and Katie's real father, and he'd always known about the day his adoptive mother had died along with the other Scientists at the government facility. Katie did too. It was that shared past that had kept them so close, and Gideon had been determined that the two children should stay with him.
After the fall of the government, Gideon had fled along with the few soldiers that survived to the nearest underground bunker before deciding that he should take the children to the relative safety of the Irish colonies. They'd spent many months travelling from bunker to bunker as they moved towards the west, settling in a colony by the coast to wait for a boat that would take them across the Irish sea. The boat never came, and they'd been living here for the last six years now.
They celebrated Matthew's birthday on the date that Gideon and Sam had found him as a baby, and after the usual exchange of gifts and a mug of the sweet, synthesised fruit juice that practically cost an arm and a leg, Matthew had been taken aside for a chat - 'Man to man'.
“Your mother and the other scientists were clever people,” Gideon had said. “They were trying to find a way to stop all of the bad stuff that is happening to us. When we found their bodies, they were all carrying hard drives with copies of their work on, including your mother and her assistant, Ryder.”
Matthew had heard of Ryder before. Gideon had said he was a computer genius and had been trying to decipher some files found on a chip that Matthew's real mother had on a bracelet. The chip seemed to have been lost though, and Gideon didn't know if Ryder had ever managed to find anything. Sometimes he wondered if it should bother him that he didn't know anything about his real family. He barely remembered Siobhan, let alone the woman who had given birth to him, why should it matter how he'd come into this world?
“No-one in the surviving group actually understood most of the research they had, but what we managed to work out was that they'd traced the origin of the big disaster to the early 21st century and that they'd found an anomaly that would take someone back to that time to try to stop it It was marked on a kind of map that Ryder had uploaded onto a special device.”
Matthew had smiled at Gideon, and he'd asked when the anomaly would open. “Not for another ten years, Matthew. But that's a good thing, it means we have plenty of time to prepare and train someone for the mission. That person will need to be a brave soldier, but also have knowledge of the world before the apocalypse. He will have to live amongst the people of the 21st century and try to find those responsible for interfering with the anomalies.”
“Ten years is a long time!” Matthew declared.
“It is, but I am sure that you will use the time wisely.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, Matthew, that you will be the one that will be trained for the mission. You'll be 20 years old when the anomaly opens; a young man with energy and passion. Your training will begin tomorrow. The soldiers will teach you how to defend yourself and how to fight, and then we'll find a way over the sea to the Irish colonies where the scientists are so that you can also learn about the life you'll find on the other side of the anomaly.” Gideon patted Matthew on the head and then placed his hand on the boy's cheek to make him look at him. “If anyone can do this, it's you, Matthew. The future is in your hands.”
Matthew opened his eyes again and gazed at Katie. She was open mouthed and blinking away tears. “It'll be OK, Katie. I have ten years to get ready.” He wiped a stray tear from her cheek and tucked a stray lock of her blonde hair behind her ear. “Maybe it won't be as bad as I think.”
“They can't make you go, Matty!” Katie wailed. “I'll go.”
“You'll never be allowed to,” Matthew said softly. “They'll expect you to be there, taking care of the injured soldiers and looking pretty, and maybe one day they'll find a husband for you so you can have babies.”
Katie grimaced. “I'd rather die facing a Predator than get married!”
Matthew laughed and gave her a friendly shove. She shoved him back and they collapsed in a fit of giggles on the bed for several minutes before Matthew pulled the blanket back around them and whispered that they should try to get some more sleep before morning. Katie fell asleep almost immediately, her head resting on Matthew's shoulder and his arm circling her waist. He tried to sleep too, but his head was full of so many thoughts. Their paths had been chosen for them already and neither had any say in the direction they would go. Ten years from now, Matthew would be leaving everything behind; the people he loved and the life he'd come to know. He would be facing an unknown enemy that was capable of destroying the world with no-one at his side to guide or support him. His stomach tightened. Tonight would not be the last time he'd wake from a nightmare.
Author: prehistoriccat
Rating: PG
Characters: Matt Anderson (as a child) Gideon Anderson, Katie (OC)
Genre: Gen, backstory, angst
Disclaimer: Canon characters are not mine, no copyright intended, but the OCs are mine to do with as I please!
A/N: This is the third part of my Matt backstory, set approx 100 years in the future.
Part one is HERE
Part two is HERE
The rebellion had stormed the government facility and allowed the Predators to enter, killing virtually everyone inside - including Gideon's scientist wife, Siobhan. Amongst the survivors are Matthew, a baby that Gideon had rescued after a Predator attack and Katie, a baby belonging to one of the other soldiers. Gideon has now fled with the children in search of safety and the future for young Matthew is about to be mapped out.
“Matty?”
“Go back to sleep!”
“But, Matty, I want to help...” Katie pulled back the blanket and blinked in the dim light. This was becoming a regular occurrence and she was worried.
“I'm fine, just go back to sleep.” Matthew snapped at her, more from embarrassment at being caught than anything else. He was ten years old, practically a man, they kept telling him. If they knew he was wetting the bed because of the nightmares he'd been having, he'd be ridiculed and his life would become even more unbearable. He angrily pulled the sodden sheet from his mattress and attempted to fold it. Katie was at his side by now, trying to take the sheet from him. He gave in and let her help him, but he couldn't look her in the eyes.
“We should wash this,” Katie said softly. “This is the third time in two weeks, it'll smell and they'll know you're wetting the bed.”
“I know, but how do I wash it without dad finding out?”
“We'll say it's mine. Put my dry sheet on your bed and I'll say I had an accident.”
“I can't let you lie for me, Katie.”
She placed her hand on his shoulder and smiled. “It doesn't matter to me. They think I'm just a kid anyway.” She then moved to her own bed and pulled off the sheet, ready to place it on Matthew's mattress. He watched her smooth it over and tuck it in and then he sat down on the bed, motioning for her to join him. As she sat down, he pulled the blanket around both of them and Katie nestled herself against his body.
After several minutes silence, Katie decided it was time she got some answers. “You had another bad dream didn't you?” Matthew nodded. “What was it about? You can tell me.”
“It doesn't matter.”
“Yes it does. I have to share a room with you. If you're going to keep waking me up like this, then don't I at least deserve an explanation?”
Matthew nodded again and sighed. She was right; she did deserve an explanation. She may only be seven years old, but she had witnessed and experienced just as much as he had. If anyone would understand, it would be her. “Do you remember my birthday?”
“Course I do! They said that now you were almost a man you could start to learn to be one. I was afraid they'd split us up.” Katie bit her bottom lip. She'd never admitted that before.
Matthew slipped his hand into hers and squeezed it. “I won't let them, Katie. You and I stick together, no matter what. I thought being with the soldiers would be cool, but it's not. I don't want to fight.”
“Is that what's wrong? Is that why you're having bad dreams?” Matthew blinked and nodded. “Then you have to tell dad, Matty. There's other things you can do; that we can both do. You don't have to be a soldier.”
“I can't. It's dad that wants me to learn how to be a soldier. He told me things. He says there's something important I have to do and I have to be prepared for it.”
“Like what?”
Matthew leaned back and closed his eyes. He remembered every detail of the meeting and it scared the hell out of him. He'd always known that Gideon was not his and Katie's real father, and he'd always known about the day his adoptive mother had died along with the other Scientists at the government facility. Katie did too. It was that shared past that had kept them so close, and Gideon had been determined that the two children should stay with him.
After the fall of the government, Gideon had fled along with the few soldiers that survived to the nearest underground bunker before deciding that he should take the children to the relative safety of the Irish colonies. They'd spent many months travelling from bunker to bunker as they moved towards the west, settling in a colony by the coast to wait for a boat that would take them across the Irish sea. The boat never came, and they'd been living here for the last six years now.
They celebrated Matthew's birthday on the date that Gideon and Sam had found him as a baby, and after the usual exchange of gifts and a mug of the sweet, synthesised fruit juice that practically cost an arm and a leg, Matthew had been taken aside for a chat - 'Man to man'.
“Your mother and the other scientists were clever people,” Gideon had said. “They were trying to find a way to stop all of the bad stuff that is happening to us. When we found their bodies, they were all carrying hard drives with copies of their work on, including your mother and her assistant, Ryder.”
Matthew had heard of Ryder before. Gideon had said he was a computer genius and had been trying to decipher some files found on a chip that Matthew's real mother had on a bracelet. The chip seemed to have been lost though, and Gideon didn't know if Ryder had ever managed to find anything. Sometimes he wondered if it should bother him that he didn't know anything about his real family. He barely remembered Siobhan, let alone the woman who had given birth to him, why should it matter how he'd come into this world?
“No-one in the surviving group actually understood most of the research they had, but what we managed to work out was that they'd traced the origin of the big disaster to the early 21st century and that they'd found an anomaly that would take someone back to that time to try to stop it It was marked on a kind of map that Ryder had uploaded onto a special device.”
Matthew had smiled at Gideon, and he'd asked when the anomaly would open. “Not for another ten years, Matthew. But that's a good thing, it means we have plenty of time to prepare and train someone for the mission. That person will need to be a brave soldier, but also have knowledge of the world before the apocalypse. He will have to live amongst the people of the 21st century and try to find those responsible for interfering with the anomalies.”
“Ten years is a long time!” Matthew declared.
“It is, but I am sure that you will use the time wisely.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, Matthew, that you will be the one that will be trained for the mission. You'll be 20 years old when the anomaly opens; a young man with energy and passion. Your training will begin tomorrow. The soldiers will teach you how to defend yourself and how to fight, and then we'll find a way over the sea to the Irish colonies where the scientists are so that you can also learn about the life you'll find on the other side of the anomaly.” Gideon patted Matthew on the head and then placed his hand on the boy's cheek to make him look at him. “If anyone can do this, it's you, Matthew. The future is in your hands.”
Matthew opened his eyes again and gazed at Katie. She was open mouthed and blinking away tears. “It'll be OK, Katie. I have ten years to get ready.” He wiped a stray tear from her cheek and tucked a stray lock of her blonde hair behind her ear. “Maybe it won't be as bad as I think.”
“They can't make you go, Matty!” Katie wailed. “I'll go.”
“You'll never be allowed to,” Matthew said softly. “They'll expect you to be there, taking care of the injured soldiers and looking pretty, and maybe one day they'll find a husband for you so you can have babies.”
Katie grimaced. “I'd rather die facing a Predator than get married!”
Matthew laughed and gave her a friendly shove. She shoved him back and they collapsed in a fit of giggles on the bed for several minutes before Matthew pulled the blanket back around them and whispered that they should try to get some more sleep before morning. Katie fell asleep almost immediately, her head resting on Matthew's shoulder and his arm circling her waist. He tried to sleep too, but his head was full of so many thoughts. Their paths had been chosen for them already and neither had any say in the direction they would go. Ten years from now, Matthew would be leaving everything behind; the people he loved and the life he'd come to know. He would be facing an unknown enemy that was capable of destroying the world with no-one at his side to guide or support him. His stomach tightened. Tonight would not be the last time he'd wake from a nightmare.