Terminator Salvation: From the Ashes by Timothy Zahn Read Free Book Online Page B

over the years.
    But for Orozco, at least, the most striking thing about the two of them was their almost symbiotic relationship. They did everything together, from their work to their sentry duties to the general struggle of life, often with only a hand signal or two between them for coordination.
    Right now was a perfect case in point. Over the two years Orozco had been here, and apparently for at least a year before that, Kyle had politely but flatly refused all offers of a real room for him and Star to sleep in at night, preferring instead to stay down here as the night guard’s backup. Right down here, in fact—Orozco had offered the two kids a comfy spot up on the mezzanine balcony, where Kyle could overlook the archway and act as a sniper backup. Alternatively, there were several anterooms off the lobby where he and Star would be at least partially out of harm’s way.
    But Kyle had politely refused both offers. He’d said that it didn’t count as a victory to kill an attacker if the sentry himself died in the process. Far better, he argued, for a potential attacker to see two armed guards and thus abandon the attack entirely.
    It was a duty the boy took very seriously. Normally, any time Orozco got up to check on a noise or movement Kyle would be instantly awake right along with him, one hand on his gun, while Star continued to sleep.
    But on those rare occasions, like tonight, when Kyle was so tired that he slept through one of Orozco’s spot-checks, Star invariably woke up instead, watching and waiting until Orozco gave her the all clear. It was as if on some subconscious level their two minds had agreed in advance which one would be on duty that night, and adjusted their sleep accordingly.
    Orozco had seen that sort of near-telepathy before, but normally only between members of highly trained and highly experienced military units. He’d only rarely seen it in civilians, and never between kids this young who weren’t related.
    The A-10’s engines had faded into the background now. Orozco wondered briefly whether it would find some hiding place before Skynet scrambled more of the HKs, then put the thought out of his mind. That was the pilot’s problem, and Orozco had more than enough problems of his own.
    His eyes drifted back to the two sleeping figures in the alcove. No, he decided, Judgment Day hadn’t been about taking the good and leaving the evil. Not when people like Kyle and Star were still here.
    Once again settling his back against the pillar, Orozco laid his M16 in his lap and drifted off to sleep.
    25

CHAPTER
    FOUR
    The half-underground complex of half-broken buildings that made up Fallback One was smaller than the group’s previous bunker had been. It was also a bit more spread out and was thus, at least in Kate’s estimation, more vulnerable to a pincer attack if and when Skynet finally tracked them down.
    But it did have a few advantages over their last base. For one thing, it was partially underground, and had a direct connection into the city’s old system of storm •drain tunnels, which meant a somewhat safer escape route. For another, it had a large open space in the middle of the complex where the entire group could gather together for planning or conferences or just plain simple emotional support.
    At the moment, though, having everyone here together was looking more like a liability than an asset.
    “—glad you got your people out alive.” The audio speaker crackled with the static-laden voice of one of the generals at Command. “Considering the scope of the attack, that’s no small feat.”
    “Thank you,” John said into the mike. “What we need right now is some assistance in replacing the gear we had to abandon. We could meet your people wherever it’s convenient—”
    “Unfortunately, we’re not in a position to help you resupply at the moment,” the general interrupted. “We can offer some organizational support, but that’s all.”
    “Perhaps a partial