Chapter 629
Sound Of Silence
Bob assessed the situation on the ground. It was clear they needed more equipment to dig out the tubing, if it was even still there. It was their only way in. If the tubing was crushed, it was probably 'Game Over'.
He sent a team of Terminators over to investigate and retrieve the Skynet Terminator that they'd taken down from the RPG attack. They wanted to make sure that threat was neutralized.
The Blackhawk soon returned with another small bulldozer as well as Sheila, Ally and Cam. Young Allison volunteered to come to the rescue site in case a smaller body was needed. John Henry suggested to John to let the female Terminators at the base join the rescue effort for the same reason. They were smaller than the male Terminators that were there. With the recent developments, they may need smaller Terminators to go in, if it was even still possible. All the Terminators volunteered to go earlier but John wanted to hold the number of personnel down. He didn't want to repeat the 'Day Of Loss'.
Once the bulldozer was released from its sling, the three Metal girls hopped out before the Blackhawk even touched down. They'd brought plenty of weapons with them including LAW rockets and Stinger missiles. The damaged Terminator who was involved in the RPG attack was thrown on board along with the six deactivated Terminators from inside the mine. The female Terminator would be handed off to Cameron's Terminators along the way. Nobody questioned it.
Free of its current load, the Blackhawk headed over and picked up the two cars still full of dead Grays and flew them to the gravel pit. They were placed there along the rest of the Skynet wreckage.
The Blackhawk then retrieved the three fallen HK drones and flew them away for inspection and disassembly, one at a time. Gail and several of their drones oversaw the rescue operation and provided security.
John grew frustrated at the time it would take to excavate back down to the level the steel tubing was at. They still didn't know if it was there. They didn't know if it was crushed or not, if it was even still there.
"What do you need more of?" John asked. "I'll send teams to obtain anything you need."
Bob looked over the landslide area. With the extra equipment and the Terminators already there it was crowded. There was a limited amount of room. Now that Skynet knew specifically where they were at and what they were up to, it made them ripe for an attack.
"There is only so much space to work." Bob said. "We run the risk of drawing too many of our forces out here and being attacked again."
John hoped they were a little better with security at this point. They'd been most worried about Skynet equipment in the air. They'd done a good job at keeping that all well away. They didn't do such a good job for the Terminator and Gray that were able to creep in on foot and launch the RPG attack.
"You have four drones supporting you." John Henry said. "We know what to watch for. We've seen everything that Skynet can send."
Bob knew that was true to a point. Skynet was full of tricks. He was sure they hadn't seen them all. He was focused on where the Metal girls were at now. They wanted to see if the tube was still in the same place and hopefully still intact.
"The Metal girls have joined the three Terminators trying to dig straight down with hand tools. They want to make contact with the tube." Bob said. "They have a ten foot piece of rebar that they will soon be able to probe with. They hoped to find it in the same place."
John watched the progress with 'night vision' from the various drones as they passed near the area. He hoped they could free up the other bulldozer to assist at some point.
"How soon until you uncover the original bulldozer?" John asked.
Bob sent a team in to try and find it already. They could use its help. He also looked at the mass of land that slid down the hill and into a small canyon next to them. Everything could be buried down there. He remembered how the 'skip loader' was knocked around and sent flying like a toy as the earth moved.
"I don't know." Bob said. "I was using it to support the end of the pipe, but the bulldozer may have been pushed back. The pipes may be gone as well. There might not be anything left there but dirt and rocks…."
John Henry took drone scans of the mountain and the displaced volume of earth. He'd come to a darker conclusion about the mountainside.
"John Henry believes the mine may have collapsed inside, at least in the immediate area you're working." John said. "There's a distinctive sag in the surface of the hill at that point, even with of all the dirt and rocks that slid down."
Bob could see that for what it was. He was sure the RPG attack after the natural landslide was what made the avalanche that followed even worse.
"That's bad news." Bob said.
John was as disgusted as he was frustrated. It seemed like everything was stacked against them. They were so close to getting everyone out earlier. He'd almost disregarded Cammy's 'order' that no one else enter the mine. He'd been ready to send the whole team in. If he'd done that, they'd all be trapped or terminated right now. He was sure the interior of the mine was collapsed. He really didn't see how it was possible to ever get anyone out. Everything was bad news to him.
"Is there any good news in any of this?" John asked.
Bob thought it was more the nature of how events unfolded. He wasn't there at the start but he was aware how it all went down and played out. It was a recon that turned into an assault.
"No." Bob said. "This was a surprise operation that got away from us."
John wanted to blame it all on Cameron but didn't really think it was all her fault. She was just there as it all unfolded.
"You can say that again." John said. "Isn't it always?"
Bob almost repeated what he'd just said but remembered what John said was just a figure of speech.
John Henry looked over all of the data and reports from the Terminators who did make it out. He was pretty sure that John wouldn't like the conclusion he'd reached.
"John, I believe from the reports Al, Ed and Frank made that Cameron would've used one of her warheads here." John Henry said.
John would have thought that was funny if things weren't so severe. Since it appeared that the entire mountain already collapsed inside. At this point, what difference did it make?
"For the way it's turned out, she might just as well have." John said.
John Henry wasn't sure that they weren't that far away from a disaster like that anyway. They didn't know what Skynet did in the mine but they knew it was something big.
"We still don't know where all the energy that Skynet was using was going." John Henry said. "The massive heat and fire could be whatever they were doing that actually started to 'melt down'."
John sat up in his chair. He'd really thought things already hit rock bottom. That might not be the case at all.
"Do you mean like a nuclear power plant 'melt down' or explosion?" John asked.
John Henry was aware what Cameron found in her future and it seemed like something in the making where the team was at inside the mine.
"Or it may be some giant power cell like the one Cameron reported on in her future." John Henry said. "If there's an explosion, it could be massive."
Now John was even more worried. He'd read the reports. The entire team was in danger now if it exploded. It was sure to cause additional avalanches if not collapse the entire mountain.
"That energy source did almost as much damage as the warhead did from Cameron's reports." John said. "I think our troops are in more danger than we've anticipated."
John Henry knew there was no verification. There was only speculation.
"IF that's what they were doing." John Henry said.
John felt the entire operation was on a timer now. It was a timer that they didn't know when it would go off.
"WE need to withdraw our people from there soon." John said.
John Henry doubted that would happen.
"I can tell you right now that none of them will leave." John Henry said.
John figured as much. How could he leave Cameron and Savannah behind to an unknown fate?
"I already know that." John said. "If I were there I wouldn't leave either."
John Henry wanted to remind John about what often irritated and angered him. There was a reason for it. It was a reason that Cameron understood better than anyone.
"That's why Cameron wants to work alone and unannounced." John Henry said. "She knows her presence draws those she loves and cares about to their deaths."
John was still irritated by that prospect. It wasn't Cameron's war. It was the Resistance's war. The burden shouldn't fall on one person.
"Cameron can't fight this war alone." John said.
John Henry thought about the current situation as well as past incidents.
"She isn't alone." John Henry said. "You know she would have been terminated half a dozen times already…."
John felt another twang of guilt. That was another problem that he didn't seem to have to any control over.
"I do." John said. "Cameron has a 'guardian angel'."
John Henry knew that burden fell on Savannah. She took many of the same risks that Cameron did.
"John, Savannah's love is writing checks her body can't cash." John Henry said. "I should say, keep cashing anyway."
John didn't need to hear it to know it. He felt he should be the one out there with Cameron.
"Don't you think I know that?" John asked.
John Henry viewed Savannah as his sister. At least he did when she was younger and he was 'younger' too. There was a way for John to keep Savannah around the base. If they had children together, Savannah was less likely to take as many risks with Cameron.
"John, I don't ask for much. I ask you to keep my 'sister'…." John Henry started out. "Contact…."
A new threat was detected. It was sooner than anticipated.
"What is it?" John asked.
John Henry didn't like what the drones spotted.
"Our drone on farthest patrol that's twelve miles out has spotted Grays." John Henry said.
John thought twelve miles out was out of the immediate danger zone.
"Are they massing for an attack?" John asked.
John Henry could see it was now a bigger problem than they'd imagined.
"They're putting on radiation suits…." John Henry said.
That wasn't news that anyone wanted to hear.
John swallowed hard. That meant any survivors in the mine were probably exposed to lethal radiation at this point. That meant Savannah was in more danger than she was before, if she was even still alive.
Cameron gave Savannah a warning. Tom only fired twice an hour now. There was never any response. There was only silence.
Boom - - Boom - - - - - Boom – Boom – Boom
Savannah uncovered her ears.
Cammy wanted Savannah to be more comfortable with herself.
"You can turn the light on, Savannah." Cammy said. "That's if you want to see us."
Savannah did want to see them. She didn't want them to see her. She was covered in soot and dirt. She needed to wear a breathing mask. She knew she looked terrible.
"I don't want you to remember me like this." Savannah said.
Cameron felt terrible to hear that. She held Savannah closer and tighter. She was aware that this is how she'd treated John when she was damaged. She didn't like him to see her less than perfect.
"Oh, Savannah…." Cameron said.
Savannah didn't feel good. She knew this was different than all her past pains. She felt she never lived up to Cameron's expectations for her. She was going to die a failure.
"I'm sorry I didn't do 'more'." Savannah said. "I did try."
Savannah's words tore into the very core of Cameron and Cammy.
"Please stop, Savannah." Cammy asked. "This isn't over."
Savannah knew it wasn't even if it was. She knew there was one person out there that would come for her. She didn't know when or how.
"I know." Savannah said. "Young Allison is going to come for me."
Cameron tilted her head slightly in the darkness.
"Here?" Cameron asked.
Savannah believed Young Allison would be there if they allowed her to be. She also knew she would use technology.
"She would, if she could." Savannah said. "She's going to use the TDE and stop me, stop us."
Cammy was confused. Things weren't like that currently.
"Do you mean now?" Cammy asked.
Savannah had faith.
"I don't know when." Savannah said. "I just know she will at some point in time."
Cameron and Cammy knew it was logical but there was no proof of any of that. If it was going to happen, it should have already happened. They shouldn't be where they were currently.
"How can you know this?" Cammy asked.
Savannah knew what she would do. She believed Young Allison would do the same.
"I just do." Savannah said. "I'd do the same for her, Cameron or John."
Cammy was aware she was left out of that 'lineup'.
"It's the 'Natural Order'." Cammy said. "It can't be disrupted."
Cameron felt there was a closer hope. The team knew right where they were or where to look for them.
"We're all getting out of here." Cameron said. "You know they're here digging for us."
Savannah didn't know the scope of the attack. None of them did.
"We also know there was an attack." Savannah said. "Maybe there's - Nobody there."
Cameron, Cammy and Savannah talked for a long time.
Savannah spoke with the face mask on. She needed to breathe the oxygen from the tanks.
They were in total darkness.
There was a darker darkness coming that they all felt.
The Command Center didn't care for the latest news about the Grays and radiation suites.
This looked like a new problem they didn't need.
"Is there a radiation leak somewhere?" John asked.
John Henry sent a drone to do low altitude scans for any radiation.
"I haven't detected any." John Henry said.
John wondered if that wasn't a response but some type of an attack.
"Are the Grays planting something?" John said. "Maybe it's chemical or biological."
That was a new prospect that John Henry hadn't considered.
"That's unknown." John Henry said.
John didn't want to sit around and wait for something to happen.
"We need to take them down now." John said.
John Henry felt caution was in order due to the unknowns.
"We could end up releasing or causing whatever they're doing." John Henry said.
John looked at the satellite map with the overlay of their Terminators.
"We have an LP a few miles from there." John said. "Are they moving to intercept them?"
John Henry already sent the closest team which was the LP.
"I've already dispatched them." John Henry said. "They should arrive in seven minutes, six minutes."
John was worried there was more than met the eye.
"Is there anything else happening around there?" John asked.
John Henry double checked.
"There's only the large black van the Grays have. They moved it closer to the mine after the suits were put on. They are still a mile out from the mountain." John Henry said. "One drone has the Grays 'locked up'. It's ready to unleash a missile."
John watched the Grays get out of the van on his monitor. They were there and then they were gone.
"Where'd they go?" John asked. "They just disappeared."
John Henry witnessed the same thing.
"I watched two of them head into the brush before they disappeared." John Henry said.
John Henry studied the suits the Grays put on. He got a more detailed look when they got out of the van this time. They may be for a different type of 'total protection'.
"John, those may be flame suits or some kind of fireproof suits." John Henry said.
John felt some new hope. Maybe the Grays just gave it to them.
"Maybe there's another way into the mine." John said. "Some of them can have tunnels and shafts that run for miles."
John Henry was a little surprised.
"The van just left." John Henry said. "I only saw two people move to the hidden entrance with something."
"There were two more." John said.
John Henry needed two drones for the new discovery.
"I've sent one of the drones on patrol over the recover… – rescue area to follow them. The other one is staying where the Grays went underground at." John Henry said.
John couldn't make sense of any of this new development.
"None of this adds up." John said. "This feels like a sucker play."
"They may be setting us up." John Henry said.
John would need to review the files and see if the Grays took anything specific with them.
"I think so but for what?" John asked.
John was afraid they planned to do what Duplicate Cameron did. She'd used a nuke.
Tom was instantly alert.
There was something that happened that was different.
"Did you feel it?" Tom asked.
Tom had remained silent the entire time. He'd only spoke to issue a warning before he fired his pattern of shots. He wanted the girls to share this time together. He knew it was important to them. He knew it was important to Savannah.
There was some vibration, it was very slight.
"More of the hill or tunnel could be collapsing." Cammy said.
They waited in the silence and darkness. Nothing else was felt or detected.
Savannah spoke, her voice sounded strained and weak.
"Cameron, I want my girls protected." Savannah said. "I don't ask for much…. I'm away from them. They're still MY babies."
The words stabbed Cameron's heart and mind.
"I've already made arrangements for that." Cameron said. "I know what's important to you. It's important to me too."
Savannah was still. Her voice was faint.
"Cammy, I'm assigning you to Summer." Savannah said. "You'll become her protector."
The words stabbed Cammy's heart and mind.
"Savannah, stop…." Cammy said. "Please."
Savannah's voice was little more than a whisper.
"I love you, Cammy." Savannah said. "I love you, Cameron."
Cammy and Cameron looked at each other in the darkness. Something was wrong. This wasn't how Savannah thought or talked.
"I love you, Savannah." Cameron and Cammy both said softly at the same time.
Savannah could only be heard by a Terminator now.
"Thank you." Savannah said. "Thank you for everything."
The darkness was total.
The sound of silence was deafening.
Only the soft weeping of the three Terminators could occasionally be heard.
The darkness became darker.
Savannah was - quiet….
Silence
Your silence is deafening
Its emptiness echoes in my mind
What is being left unsaid
Are actions very unkind
For what is important
You will MAKE time
Not act is if someone
Has committed a crime
Each new day
Is a meaningless as the last
It is sickeningly apparent
Happiness only exists in the past
Abandoned, shunned and cast out
Pretending nothing existed
Banishing their only true love
Devastation beyond twisted
Each night I hope and pray
That if I could actually sleep
I would never again wake up
Somewhat sad no one will weep
Nobody