No Fate But What We Make: The John Connor Chronicles

No Fate But What We Make Part One

The John Connor Chronicles

There's no fate but what we make.

Ever since I was born, my mother constantly told me this. As soon as I could walk, she made sure I knew how important I was, how I was supposed to become this big savior of humanity when Judgement Day happened when I was 13. Up until my mother was institutionalized, I was trained to be a soldier, a leader, the hero of humanity.

Then we stopped Judgement Day. My mother and I, and a rogue T-800 Terminator found a way to keep the end of the world from happening. The T-1000 that been sent to kill me was destroyed, then the T-800 I'd come to know as 'Uncle Bob' destroyed himself to keep any trace of his technology out of the wrong hands. As I watched the closest thing I ever had to a father figure sink into the molten steel, I started to realize that for the first time in my life, I could be my own person. I wasn't bound by some destiny with the weight of the world on my shoulders. I could be a normal kid. I could play baseball and date girls and have fun. I could have a real home.

Unfortunately, my mom wasn't convinced it was over. She wouldn't be convinced until the day Judgement Day was supposed to happen came and went with no nuclear war. And until she was convinced, she kept close tabs on me, making sure I continued my training just to be safe.

Over the next two years, my mother and I continued arguing over what may or may not happen when we got to Judgement Day. It's like no matter how this went down, she had my entire future planned out. If the world ended, I'd be this big war hero that saved humanity. If not, she planned for me to go into politics to ensure that nothing like Judgement Day ever happened. An existence of keepings tabs on our government to make sure we didn't die due to some bonehead decision.

Saving the world is nice and all, but I wanted a chance to have my own dreams. My own wishes and desires. I wanted to fall in love and watch my own kids grow up in a safe world. Why did it have to be me that has to save the world? Why did I have to be so important in the grand scheme of things?

*

2 Years Later

Playa del Carmen

Mexico

John Connor sat at the counter of a beachside club, tinkering with a device he'd been trying to make for some time. In his right hand, he held a small screwdriver to adjust the wiring. In his left hand, he had a stress relief ball that he was repeatedly squeezing. A doctor had prescribed it in lieu of pills after seeing how stressed John was at such a young age. It didn't quite take all the stress away, but at least it helped somewhat to be able to relieve a little stress.

Not too far away, Sarah Connor sat at a table while sipping on a drink. She couldn't get over how much John was starting to look like his father, who had died before John was born. But she still wasn't convinced that the danger had passed, that's why she'd been raising John to be a fighter, to always be aware of any conceivable threat. She wouldn't let herself be fooled again.

As she watched John, she realized how gifted he was with technology and wondered if that was something he got from his father. She only knew Kyle Reese for a day, but she saw so much of him in John when she looked at the boy, wondering just how much the two learned from each other in the war.

"Almost got it," John said as he turned the screwdriver again. "If this works, I'll have an advantage over any Terminators that come our way. Unfortunately, I need a strong enough energy source to power it. Maybe if got a car battery..."

As Sarah enjoyed her drink, someone walked onto the beach, holding a sawed-off shotgun in his hand. Sarah just happened to turn around just in time to see a T-800 walking toward the club.