Chapter 153

Crossroads

Cameron heard something near them. It was nothing good.

It was a predator stalking them. It was after them….

Cameron got ready to strike. She tracked the sound moving towards them. She waited and took aim with a rock. The predator moved slowly and carefully. It was aware of their presence and stalked them. It was about to attack.

She calculated the predator's position and rate of stealthy advance. She decided to strike first at the unseen threat. She threw one of the stones that she'd selected. She hoped a tree branch would not deflect it.

There was a dull thud and a loud roar.

She threw a second stone.

Something flashed past them as the second stone hit it. It staggered when they heard the dull thud of the second impact. It roared again. It appeared to be hurt but not incapacitated.

"I saw it." Allison said. "It was a leopard."

Jesse wondered where they were at this point.

"Are we in Africa?" Jesse asked.

Cameron checked her visual reference files and made a positive identification.

"No, it was a Panthera onca, a feline in the Panthera genus. It was a jaguar." Cameron said.

Vanna thought that narrowed down the area where they were.

"So we are in Central America or the northern part of South America." Vanna said.

Cameron was upset they were so far from 'home'. The positional error was bad enough.

"Apparently." Cameron said.

Now the time period would be the next factor that she needed to ascertain. The temporal error would determine their fate.

A mammal seemed more 'modern' than a dinosaur. That was a good thing.

"What century are we in?" Allison asked.

Cameron looked up at the reddish clouds overhead again.

"I still don't know yet. I need to see the stars." Cameron said. "Stay close to me and stay away from the water. Stay right behind me. Watch your feet and where you walk."

Cameron was more hopeful. If they were in the Western Hemisphere, they were within walking distance of their home. It could take many months. That all depended on what they came across and 'when' they were. If they were decades or centuries off it would not really matter.

Either way Cameron was going to get them home. She was determined they were not going to die in this jungle. She rearmed herself. If the big cat came back she would kill it this time if it continued to stalk them. It only took a moment for one of the girls to get careless and be attacked. Her friends were going to need food and the animal's skin could make clothing or at least a body covering.

Cameron was now worried about other predators. She needed to keep her senses finely tuned. That big cat would most likely be back at some point. Maybe she would approach it head on and fight it in a 'fair fight'. She would pit the animal's strengths against her strengths. It would determine who the king of the jungle really was.

"Stay close and stay away from the water." Cameron repeated. She knew what could lurk there.

Vanna read of some threats before. She thought they were mostly in South America.

"Do we need to worry about Piranhas, alligators and crocodiles?" Vanna asked.

Cameron was aware they were all threats depending on where they were at.

"Yes." Cameron said. "Let me always lead. I don't want anyone to lag behind."

Cameron was worried for her friends. She was worried too about the mess she'd gotten them all into.

They moved through the jungle. Cameron was ever aware and listened for the tiniest sound or anything that was different or changed as they approached. She knew the animals were highly attuned to their environment and the slightest changes alerted them to danger. That in turn alerted other animals.

At one point she thought the big cat was back but the noise never repeated itself. It may have pick up their scent and remembered its last encounter or picked up Cameron's predator pheromones and thought otherwise.

Cameron needed to pass under the canopy of the trees in many places. She searched for danger in front of her, to each side, behind her and above her.

There were birds that made noises now. She did not see them. They were hidden and seemed to like to stay that way.

It suddenly grew very quiet around her. The girls all heard it too. The silence was deafening.

They all readied their spears to attack or defend themselves with a thrusting motion.

"Stay here." Cameron said. "Don't move from here."

Cameron advance slowly. The danger seemed in front of her.

Without warning the danger was upon her. It dropped from above. It was a giant snake. It was a constrictor of some type. She thought it was an anaconda.

The giant snake tried to wrap around her but she avoided its grasp. It tried to bite her as well. It almost did. She tried to keep it where it was so the girls would not be endangered.

She went to move but tripped. Its tail section had wrapped around her feet and made her fall. Its giant head made another lunge at her. This time she grabbed its jaws. The snake wrapped itself further around her body at this time.

She saw the girls move forward with their spears and began to stab at the snake. She wanted them to be safe but they came to help her anyway.

She forced the snakes jaws open until they broke and ripped apart. The lower one tore completely off. The snake now thrashed around violently.

"Get back." Cameron shouted to the girls. "It's dying now."

Cameron changed her grip and now held the snake's neck area behind its head. She looked directly its eyes and she showed the snake what constriction really was. She crushed the tissue flat and ripped its head off. The headless body thrashed and twisted violently. She still held the head and pointed it at it violently contorting headless body. She wondered if it comprehended its demise or was already dead. She tossed the head into the thrashing mess. She could see the body of the snake bleeding from dozens of puncture wounds that were inflicted by the girls.

She checked for any damage or injury among the girls and there wasn't any. She was undamaged as well.

The girls all talked excitedly at what they'd just witnessed.

Cameron cleaned her hands on some leaves and led the group away. She caution them to be silent as they moved. They were all highly aware right now of every sound. She listened for additional danger as she advanced. Her head tilted slightly to the side with a new sound. She paused and focused. She heard something that was good news.

Cameron smiled.

It was machinery. It was in the distance but it was there.

There was something man made near here. That at least brought them to within a couple of centuries from when they left.

Cameron was elated.

"I can hear man made machinery in the distance." Cameron told the girls.

All three girls knew that was a positive. None of them really wanted to run into a dinosaur anyway. That left the threat of more big snakes or large reptiles that could still be a problem. There was that big cat too if it came back.

Cameron continued to lead the girls through the dense foliage. Anything in her path scurried off before she saw it. That was good and bad.

A little further on the foliage thinned. Cameron came across a dirt road. It was in good shape and appeared maintained. This was good. Now they were within a century of their time.

There was a spot of oil. She reached down and touched it. She was very pleased at what she analyzed. It was synthetic oil. This was even better.

Cameron explained this to the girls. All three of them were happier than they were before. It was a relative modern innovation to be used in remote areas like where they were.

"At least we are within a few decades of our time." Cameron said.

Allison was aware that could be a pendulum swing with the direction of time.

"Is that in the future or in the past?" Allison asked.

That was still a worry to Cameron. She hoped for the past as opposed to the future. Anytime ahead in the future would allow John more time with Riley.

"I don't know yet." Cameron said.

Vanna swatted at some insects hovering around her.

"We should be able to get some clothes soon." Vanna said.

Jesse still liked to see all of them all naked.

"We don't want those tiny bright pink nipples getting sun burnt, do we?" Jesse joked.

Vanna glanced at Jesse.

"Larger browner nipples can get sun burnt too." Vanna said.

Allison looked at Cameron and then at herself.

"Mine are in-between and I don't want mine sun burnt either." Allison said. "I guess we won't have to worry about 'tan lines' this way."

Cameron smiled at the girl's playful banter. The new revelations really lifted everyone's spirits.

Cameron proceeded with caution. The last thing she wanted to encounter was a group of men. Finding the girls lost and naked would prompt the men to want 'more'. She did not want them to be subjected to that violent predatory sexual behavior again.

She wanted to be the one to find anyone or any threat first.

Cameron stopped and listened. She stiffened. The far off sound was a threat of the worst kind.

"Everyone get down." Cameron nearly shouted. "Back up against the trees quickly."

The girls did as Cameron instructed and looked around them. They could not detect anything different.

"What is it?" Vanna asked worried.

Cameron looked in the direction she could hear the noise. It sounded as if it was headed straight for them.

"It might be an HK drone." Cameron said. "Hurry."

The noise grew louder.

Cameron listened but could not yet see it. As she continued to listen she was relieved. She could now identify the noise.

"It's a small jet." Cameron said.

One minute later a small twin engine jet flew low over them. It was painted black. The landing gear was down. The flaps were down. Cameron immediately headed in the direction the jet was going. It must have been lined up to land on a runway if the gear and flaps were both down.

It started to get dark.

"That jet is going to land close by here." Cameron said. "It is within five miles based on its approach."

The girls tensed up. Contact would soon happen. They were under armed and undressed. None wanted to be apprehended in that condition. They knew what would follow their capture. They all knew Cameron would protect them from that.

"We are bound to run into humans or machines soon." Cameron said.

Vanna swatted at some more insects.

"The sooner we get some clothes the better." Vanna said.

Allison wanted a sip of water soon.

"I am starting to get thirsty too." Allison said.

Cameron looked sadly at the three girls. She understood their hardships and displeasures.

"I am sorry for all the discomfort I've caused all of you." Cameron said.

Jesse touched Cameron's arm to reassure her.

"Cameron, don't worry about it. We are all here with you by choice." Jesse said. "We have all endured Hell in our past - the future."

The responsibility weighed heavily on Cameron.

"I still feel bad I have marooned us 'somewhere' in time." Cameron said.

A break came in the clouds. Cameron looked at the stars in the budding darkness.

"Oh no." Cameron said. "NO!"

Cameron looked like she might shut down. The girls became worried.

"What is it?" Vanna asked.

Cameron checked the stars again. She knew the answer would be the same. It was.

"We have been gone too long." Cameron said. "I have failed. It's over…."

Cameron started to cry.

The three girls became even more worried.

"How much time has passed?" Jesse asked.

They'd only arrived a few hours ago.

"We have only been here less than half a day." Allison said.

Cameron could not face the girls.

"John belongs to Riley now…." Cameron said.

The three girls all looked at each other. Now there were even more worried.

"How long has it been?" Allison asked.

"It's been too long. That's how long it's been." Cameron said. "I have thrown everything away for nothing."

It sounded like they were too far in the future.

"Are we in the same future?" Vanna asked.

"We are in the future all right. It is just not where I wanted to be. We are more than a decade off where I wanted to go." Cameron said.

It sounded like the original mission was a bust.

"So we can't complete your mission?" Allison asked.

"No." Cameron said. "This was all for nothing."

Vanna hoped something was salvageable.

"How long have we been gone from our departure date?" Vanna asked. "We can work something out."

"John and Riley should have at least one child by now." Cameron said as she nearly collapsed. "I've lost him 'forever' for NOTHING. Now I have less than NOTHING."

Cameron cried as the girls tried to comfort and console her.

It pained all of them to see this mighty warrior reduced to tears. It showed them how much Cameron was really like all of them now. They all been in the same spot before.

Crossroads

Everyday life can grind to a halt
When confronted with life's crossroads
One can look in utter disbelief
As everything around them erodes

The choices seem slim when the crossroads
Are the junction of 'nowhere' and 'dead end'
Where is there to go at that point
There is nothing on which to depend

It all becomes very clouded
Life is about making choices
Things always seem confusing
As our head hears many voices

Which way is up
Which way is down
We are forced to wear a frown
Instead of a beautiful crown

Does one listen to others commands
As their life around them implodes
Or do they stand tall and firm
As they make their own crossroads

Nobody