Enjoy !
Story: Lifelines
Author: jinxed_wood
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 23077
Author's Summary: Martha needs to spread the message but, in order to do that, she needs to stay alive - something Derek Reese is very good at. (Crossover with The Sarah Connor Chronicles and set during the year-that-wasn't.)
Characters/Pairings: Martha Jones, Derek Reese (SCC)
Warnings: Swearing
Recced because: I'm a sucker for YTNW stories and this one is excellent. Don't worry if you've never seen The Sarah Connor Chronicles - I haven't, and I still thoroughly enjoyed this well written story. I love the way jinxed_wood develops the relationship between Derek and Martha from his initial distrust and almost-dislike of her, through to a strong friendship.
The stranger cursed under his breath. "Great, just great," he said, as he swung up onto the manhole ladder and closed it.
"It’s okay, it's gone," Martha said.
"Not for long," the stranger said grimly, as he clicked on a torch, and drove a bolt home on the manhole… a bolt?
"Since when do manholes have bolts locks?" Martha asked.
The stranger gave her a look, as if she'd asked why was the sky blue "We'll need to move fast," he said. "They won't come down here on their own, not anymore, but they will travel in packs, and we'’ll want to be somewhere else when that happens."
"We do?" Martha’s eyes had become accustomed to the light of his torch. He was tall, wide shouldered, and moved like he'd been doing this for years. "You’re military?" she asked.
He looked at her. "It knew your name," he said. "I've never heard one of those things call a human by its name before."
Martha sighed wearily. "Yeah, it'’s a long story."
"Is it the kind of story that'’s likely to get me killed?" he asked. He grabbed Martha by the elbow and steered her down the sewer tunnel. Martha let him; it wasn't as if she knew where they were going. Which reminded her…
"Where are we going?"
"You'll know when we get there," he said tersely.
"Why won't you tell me now?"
"So you won't blab if we get caught before we reach it."