**Author's note** Welcome to Chapter 1 of Blood is Thicker than Coltan. This story follows a 17-year-old girl (Mackenzie) through her adventures, which includes jumping back in time to the year 2009 from her future home of 2034. She comes into the care of the Connors, but the reason of her mission is still a mystery, as is her past. Who is this girl?

Chapter 1

April 11th, 2034

Bullets whizzed past my head with centimeters to spare. I could feel the heat of them as they nearly singed my skin. Me and two of my closest friends and fellow soldiers were hiding behind a pile of scrap metal. Well…it didn't used to be scrap metal. It used to be part of the things shooting at us. I didn't know exactly what they were called, and I didn't care. They were all tin cans to me.

I gripped my .223 assault rifle tighter and ducked my head as another bullet ricocheted off somewhere too close for comfort. My rifle may have been a bit outdated, but I liked the older weapons. I couldn't stand any of the confiscated terminator energy weapons. I glanced up at Tyler, who was picking shots off at the tin cans while standing precariously close to the edge of a huge old tire. "Psst! Quit it, Tyler! You're only giving them our position. If I'm gonna jump now we can't have them know we're here," I hissed up at him.

Tyler nodded, slung his sniper rifle over his shoulder again, and jumped down. "I guess so. I just want to get a bullet in one of their heads," he replied, clenching his hands into fists. I could most definitely understand his hatred of the machines that'd hunted humans since the beginning of the nuclear war. Not only had they preyed on both his parents, but they got mine too… I'd been an orphan for nearly seven years now.

A laugh sounded behind us. I turned around to see my best friend, Sierra. "You really think that'd do anything, Ty? Not even a .50 cal would do anything, and you know it."

Tyler narrowed his eyes at Sierra and scoffed. "Oh, and those pipe bombs you insist on lugging around will?" he shot back, pointing at the cylindrical bombs strapped across her torso.

"They at least slow 'em down," she sneered.

"Guys! Stop it, okay? I know you guys don't want me to do this, but I have to, so either go away or help me with these," I said, holding up the time travel modules Sierra stole from John Connor's safe. It still amazed me she could get in there, and without tripping any alarms either. Sierra and Tyler glared at each other for just a moment more, then stuck their tongues out at each other. "Real mature, guys," I reprimanded.

After the three of us had gotten the modules ready, Tyler sighed. "We're gonna miss you, Mac," he said, looking at me sadly. His shoulders were drooped and he was chewing on his lip slightly. He only did that when he was worried…

My eyebrows furrowed and a lump formed in my throat. "Y-yeah, Tyler, I'm gonna miss you too."

Sierra blinked a few tears out of her eyes, an uncharacteristic action for her. The lump in my throat grew and I bit my lip. I promised myself I wouldn't cry, because I'd probably see them again in my lifetime. Maybe I wouldn't, but I was trying not to think about that… I hugged both my friends tightly for a few moments before stepping back into the middle of the three modules. We'd put one on the pile of scrap metal we were hiding behind and two on the ground, creating a triangle in which the time travel "bubble" would form.

I tossed my rifle to Tyler, getting a more hardened look in my eyes again. "If I don't succeed, put a bullet in one of the tin can's heads with it. Take good care of her too," I added, flicking my eyes briefly in Sierra's direction.

Tyler blinked and nodded, straightening up a bit and raising his right hand to his forehead in a salute. "Good luck, Mackenzie," he murmured.

My heart lurched slightly. That was the first time Ty had used my actual name. He'd always just used Mac as a nickname. I saluted back to both of them and pushed a button on the module next to me. Blue lightning began to form around me in a spherical shape. It would only be a matter of minutes before I'd be 20 some years in the past.

Before the sphere had completely formed, though, energy bolts shot over our heads and an HK-aerial hovered over the pile of scrap metal. Two T-888s jumped off each side of the HK and began walking steadily toward Tyler and Sierra.

"Get out of here! Now! Go!" I screamed at them, but they didn't seem to hear me. The drone of the HK must have been overpowering my voice. They got the idea, however. I glanced to the blue sphere around me and it was starting to flicker. Any second now, I'd leave my friends to fight off the triple-eights. It was too late to stop the process now.

Just as I was beginning to disappear from the world I've always known, something exploded behind me. Moments later, I was knelt down in the middle of a…bunker? I didn't know where I was, but I did know about the pain shooting through my left shoulder and my lower back. I yelped in pain and collapsed.

* * * * *

2009

The next thing I remember was waking up in a strange bed, in a strange room, with no one around. My head throbbed slightly, and my left shoulder was a little numb. I rubbed my eyes and glanced around the room. Thank goodness I wasn't in a hospital. Rubbing my shoulder, I noticed it was dressed and bandaged pretty well. The bandages covered my upper torso, so I didn't worry about needing a shirt just yet. Whoever had found me had not only fixed me up, but dressed me as well.

"Good, you're awake," a voice sounded from the doorway of the room I was in. I glanced up to see a somewhat tall woman with black hair. She was drying her hands on a small towel and she sat in a chair next to the bed I was laying on.

"Where am I?" I asked, still a little confused with what had happened since I lost consciousness.

The woman laughed slightly. "You're in my house currently. But I suppose you're wanting to know when you are as well."

I blinked and stuck my right arm under the blanket that was covering me. "When? Wh-why would I want to know that?"

"Don't worry, I know you're from the future." She nodded to my right arm and added, "That tattoo is a dead giveaway to those who know what to look for. You're lucky Derek found you."

My heart stopped for just a moment. "Derek?" I asked. I knew who she was talking about, but she didn't have to know that.

The woman tilted her head to one side, and then smiled slightly. "I always forget my manners. I'm Sarah Connor. Derek Reese is my son's uncle. I suppose he'd be my brother-in-law…" she trailed off. "My son is-"

"John Connor," I finished for her. "I've only met him once in the future." Sarah and gave me a somewhat blank look, expecting my name now. "O-oh, I'm uh…I'm Mackenzie."

"Don't have a last name?" Sarah asked, giving me an inquisitive look.

I gulped slightly, trying to think fast for a name. I couldn't have her, or anyone here, know who I was…not just yet at least. "White. My name is Mackenzie White," I said, trying not to stutter. My mind went blank, so the only answer I could come up with was…well, the color of the walls.

Sarah nodded. "Nice to meet you, Mackenzie White." She studied me for a few moments. "What year are you from?"

"I'm from 2034," I managed to choke out, frowning at my sudden watery eyes. All the memories of what had happened just before I jumped into the past just came rushing back to me. I could still faintly remember seeing Sierra run for her life, tugging Tyler by the collar behind her as he tried to take some shots at the triple-eights.

"What happened? When you came back, how'd you get all that shrapnel in your shoulder?" Sarah asked, giving me a sympathetic look. Or at least attempting one.

I sat up completely and looked at my hands. "Two of my fellow soldiers and I were hiding behind a pile of scrap metal, preparing for me to jump back. An HK-aerial and two T-888s found us right after I'd pushed the button to jump. It was too late for me to help my friends…" I bit my lip. "Something exploded the exact moment before I left 2034. I guess that's how I got the shrapnel in my shoulder. I don't remember anything after that, except for this," I explained, my voice low.

Sarah nodded and I looked up to catch her gaze. "And your mission?" she asked.

That caught me off guard. "Classified," I said within seconds. "I'm sorry, I have explicit orders to not disclose the purpose of my mission to anyone." She seemed to accept that answer, thankfully. There was movement behind her, in the doorway, so I glanced up to see who it was. I paled when I saw it was a girl who looked not too much older than me. I'd seen this girl before, in the future. She was a terminator.

Sarah noticed my discomfort and turned around as well. "Cameron, this is Mackenzie White. She'll be staying with us for awhile."

Cameron tilted her head to one side probably just a quarter of an inch and her eyes scanned me. Great, now she really knows who I am, I said to myself. "Thank you for explaining," Cameron said, nodding. "Breakfast is ready." And with that, she turned and left just as silently as she appeared. I was beyond surprised she didn't say anything about me.

I gulped and my eyes flicked to Sarah. "She's a machine, what's she doing here?" I asked.

She got up and walked to the doorway. "Cameron may be a machine, but she's saved John's life on several accounts. She was sent back to protect him. I don't even fully trust her, and I don't think I ever will, but while she's here we can use her protection and skills," she said, leaving next to no room to argue the matter further. "Like she said, breakfast is ready."

As much as I hate tin cans like Cameron, I guess I have to put that in the back of my mind if I'm going to live here, I thought. I flipped the blanket that was covering me off and swung my legs over the edge of the bed, just perching there for a few moments as I waited for my head to stop spinning.

* * * * *

When I got downstairs, I followed my nose to the kitchen. I could smell pancakes and coffee. My mouth watered at the thought of finally having a warm meal. I'd been living off food ration packs my entire life. Now that I thought about it, I don't think I'd ever had a warm meal.

Before I walked into the kitchen, I peered around the corner to see who was there. Cameron was standing in the corner, looking out the kitchen window and scanning everything in sight for possible threats. Sarah was at the stove, flipping a few pancakes and cracking eggs into a bowl. At the kitchen table sat a man, in his mid thirties it looked like, who was taking a drink of his cup of coffee. When he set the cup back down on the table, I could see the barcode tattoo on his right arm, just like I had. He had other tattoos along with it, and he had dark brown hair and hazel eyes. Derek Reese…

"You know, if we go in there, we might get something to eat," said a joking voice behind me. I gasped and jumped back, into whoever had snuck up on me. The person caught me and turned me around. I looked up into the eyes of none other than John Connor. "For being a soldier in the future, you sure had your guard down," he added.

"Uhh, I just didn't expect you to sneak up on me like that," I said, trying to defend the obvious fact.

He shot me a skeptical look, but shrugged it off. "You looked pretty enthralled in spying on the kitchen."

I crossed my arms over my chest tightly and immediately regretted the motion. I winced just slightly, hoping John wouldn't notice, and narrowed my eyes at him. "I wasn't spying. I just-"

John shook his head and flashed a very brief smile. "I'm kidding, let's get something to eat."

Following John into the kitchen, I took a seat across from Derek. He glanced up at me briefly, took another drink of coffee, and stuck a bite of pancake in his mouth. I tried not to feel awkward, but with the silence except for the scrambled eggs Sarah was cooking, it was kinda hard. I murmured a quiet 'thank you' to John when he sat down with two plates, one for me and one for him.

"Sarah says you're from 2034," Derek said after several somewhat awkward moments on my part. He glanced up at me again, studying my face.

I nodded and swallowed, gulping down a bit of my orange juice as well. "That's right. The Resistance is really close to launching a strike against Skynet."

"Why aren't you still there, then?" Derek asked, his brow furrowing slightly.

I paused before I took another bite. Looking at my plate instead of into Derek's eyes, I replied, "I came back here on a classified mission."

"And you can't tell us anything about it?" he pressed further.

I glanced up and shook my head. "Not just yet."

Derek sighed slightly and folded his arms over his chest, but he seemed to accept my answer. At least I hoped he did. "I guess you'll tell us when the time is right, then…"

I finished off my pancakes in more silence, still just as awkward as before. I thanked Sarah for breakfast, then retreated back upstairs. The room I was in had a fairly large sized window next to the bed, so I just perched on the edge of the bed and gazed out the window. It amazed me that in just three years from now, if John, Sarah, and Derek didn't stop Skynet from even existing, all of these beautiful homes, the people inside them…everything…would be nothing but radioactive rubble.

* * * * *

After what seemed like forever, a floorboard creaked in my room. I turned my head to the side to see Cameron standing behind me barely a meter away. I tried not to tense. "I guess no one knocks, huh?"

Cameron tilted her head to one side, like she did before, stepped back to the doorway and knocked on the door. "It was open. I didn't think I needed to," she explained.

I shook my head and sighed slightly, looking back to the window. "I guess you didn't. You just seem to sneak up on me too quietly."

"I apologize." After a few minutes, Cameron sat in the chair next to the bed and studied me. I never knew I was so interesting, I said sarcastically in my head. "You're not who you said you are," she stated, still looking at me. "Your name isn't Mackenzie White."

I whipped my head around to glance out the doorway to see if anyone was there, then I glared at Cameron. "Not a single word, tin can. They can't know who I am just yet," I hissed.

She nodded. "I analyzed your blood when Sarah was getting the shrapnel out of your shoulder. Your DNA is very close to that of Derek Ree-"

I covered Cameron's mouth with my hand. "Shh! What don't you get about not telling anyone?"

Cameron only blinked and removed my hand. "No one is within hearing range. I would know."

Pressing my lips into a thin line, I narrowed my eyes at her and sat on the bed again, crossing my arms over my chest despite how much my shoulder ached. "You swear not to tell anyone who I really am unless I specifically tell you? Say it."

"I swear," she said without blinking. "I will not tell anyone who you are." All of a sudden, she got up and took two steps over to the desk that was in the room. "Someone is coming up the stairs," she murmured.

Moments later, Derek appeared in the doorway. He tossed some clothes and a pair of sneakers in my direction. "Put those on. You need to come with me."

I blinked and looked up at him. "Where are we going?"

"Well, if you're gonna live with us, you need fake papers. I know a guy in downtown LA who doesn't ask questions. Get changed into those clothes and meet me in the living room."