Chapter 917
Ahead Of Schedule
Cameron's team spotted Gail's team on the escalator after they'd exited from the tram. They headed for the parking lot once Gail's team spotted them and moved to follow them.
Cameron, Cammy and Savannah entered the parking area. They looked around for any obvious threats, none were spotted.
Cammy looked back and saw Gail's team was thirty seconds behind them.
"Gail, Ally and Sheila are on their way." Cammy said. "I see them exiting from the casino now."
Savannah was worried they were under gunned if they encountered a Liquid Metal Terminator.
"Cameron, we're going to need better weapons." Savannah said.
Cameron felt they could do some damage.
"We have them." Cameron said.
Cameron opened the SUV and took two Thermite grenades out.
Savannah could see that wasn't going to cut it.
"That's it?" Savannah asked.
CamNet informed Cameron what items Bob set along with the newest team of Metal girls.
"This is all I have here, right now." Cameron said. "Cam's team is bringing more. They also have acid rounds for the grenade launchers they brought."
Savannah was a little surprised to hear that. It was only a short time ago that they came to the conclusion that 'The Enforcer' might be a Liquid Metal Terminator. Cam's team was already on the ground in Las Vegas when they'd made that determination.
"That was good foresight." Savannah said. "Did you ask for them to bring them?"
Cameron didn't want to get into the details.
"No." Cameron said. "CamNet requested the items for us. She told Bob to have them ready when the other Metal girls left the Resistance base."
Savannah nodded her head in agreement.
"Someone is on the ball." Savannah said.
It made Savannah wonder if it was really Young Allison again that helped them out. Young Allison seemed to be one step ahead of them on everything. That went back to her knowing what Cameron was going to do to get on the moving train. That was from the very start of the operation. It continued to expand and grow since then.
Cameron was sure as well that Young Allison was probably behind it. That was a good thing. It showed she was 'on the ball'.
"I guess they are." Cameron said.
Cameron and the Metal girls all worked at training Young Allison to study past battles, both from the Resistance and from Cameron's future. There were other historical battles fought in the past that merited study. There were many times when a smaller force was able to overcome a larger and better equipped adversary. It usually relied on some imaginative thinking. It was about thinking outside the box.
Gail's team approached Cameron's team.
"Here they come." Savannah said.
Sheila flashed Savannah a big smile.
"I wish." Sheila said.
Ally understood Sheila's meaning and agreed with it completely.
"Damn straight." Ally said.
Ally and Sheila high fived each other up high and then down low.
Gail was more reserved when she greeted Savannah.
"Hi, Savannah." Gail said.
Savannah flashed Gail a smile.
"Hi, Gail." Savannah said.
Gail and Savannah both thought about their sexual encounter in the early hours of the morning. It was something that was a long time in the making. It was very beautiful for both of them.
Savannah hoped Gail didn't want more from her than she could give. She tried to make it clear to Gail what her future obligations were. If they could only share very infrequently, it would make each encounter that much more special. There would be no routine to it with everyone along for the ride. She'd found that out with Cammy that thing's could turn very routine. They often did the exact same things the same way at the same time in either the morning or the night when she was in bed. She never said anything to Cammy about it but Cammy always did everything exactly the same for the same amount of time, every time. It was like a clock. She didn't experience that with the other Metal girls, only the one's based off of Cameron's program. It made her wonder how Cameron 'interacted' with John. She needed to refocus.
Cameron wanted to get the team moving. The goal was to get away from the Syndicate casino without having to deal with the Liquid Metal Terminator. Every second they delayed increased the chances of that.
"Everyone pile in." Cameron said. "Let's Go."
Cammy wondered what the next destination was going to be. She didn't like to 'run' from a fight.
"Where are we going?" Cammy asked.
Savannah looked back towards the entrance into the casino from the parking lot.
"The main goal is to move away from here." Savannah said. "For now, that is."
She understood that none of the Metal girls wanted to withdraw. If there was a threat they wanted to engage it. The main problem was that they didn't have proper weapons with them to take on a Liquid Metal Terminator. Cam's team brought better weapons to Las Vegas. They were going to meet up at the airport and distribute those weapons among the different groups. They would be ready for an encounter with the Liquid Metal Terminator at that point.
Gail wondered if Cameron wanted them to have them to have the extra flexibility of another vehicle.
"Do you want us to retrieve our SUV?" Gail asked.
Cameron thought back to when Gail's team transferred their long guns and vests into her SUV. There wasn't anything left in the other SUV of consequence.
"Later…." Cameron said. "There are more vehicles at the airport."
Gail wondered if that was their destination or a secondary destination.
"Is that where we're going now?" Gail asked.
Sheila perked up at the thought of returning to the airport where they'd left the minivan.
"I hope so. We can take the minivan again." Sheila said. "I wasn't done 'using' it."
Savannah wondered what Sheila was talking about. A minivan was different from a cargo van. It was open and exposed with a lot of glass around it. A cargo van would be a better choice for their operations. It would better conceal their weapons and any of the girls who wore body armor. She wondered if she must have missed something.
"What were you using it for other than to get around?" Savannah asked. "It would be very exposed."
Savannah wondered if Sheila was trying to show off.
Gail didn't want Savannah to get caught up in Sheila's folly. She remembered what Ally said on multiple occasions about Sheila and her sexual actions.
"Sheila's trying to be funny." Gail said. "Never mind her, she's an exhibitionist."
Sheila looked at Savannah and smiled as she shrugged her shoulders.
Savannah didn't like the direction of the conversation. She wanted everyone on their toes and ready for action.
"I want everyone to look around and pay attention." Savannah said.
Cameron liked the way Savannah was able to get all the Metal girls under control as she drove the SUV out of the parking structure. She checked her rear view mirror as she entered the main street.
Gail had looked forward to them having a few rooms at the casino hotel they'd just left. Now that option looked like it was gone. Maybe they could set up a base at another hotel.
"Are we going to rent rooms at another hotel?" Gail asked.
Cammy turned around and gave Gail a dirty look. She knew that Gail wanted to be with Savannah again. She was already worried that she was going to need to share Savannah with Cameron. She was pretty sure that once Cameron got her hands on Savannah she wasn't going to get her back.
Sheila instantly picked up on Gail's reference. She was on board.
"We're still in Vegas…." Sheila said.
Ally and Sheila giggled.
"What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas." Ally and Sheila said together.
Cameron looked over at Savannah. She wanted to make herself clear without being too explicit.
"Not always." Cameron said. "They can happen elsewhere too and it doesn't need to stay there…."
Cammy gave Cameron a dirty look.
"Right back at you, Cammy." Cameron said without looking at Cammy.
Cameron didn't need to look back because she knew how Cammy thought. Cammy ran her program after all.
Ally could clearly see the direction that things were headed.
"I guess we are really one big happy family. At least for right now." Ally said.
Cameron looked over at Savannah again.
"Not all of us." Cameron said. "Not yet anyway."
Savannah smiled at her and winked.
She was very aware how close Cameron and her were to consummating their love yesterday. It was really only a matter of time. Cameron needed the right place, setting and moment to get past her programming conflicts to be who she truly was inside.
Savannah planned to make sure everything happened to facilitate that. She didn't want to initiate or push anything on her own. She wanted Cameron to take what belonged to her. That was her. If she allowed Cameron to do that, it would make everything that much sweeter for both of them. It would prove that Cameron had free choice of will and was able to exert herself and take what she wanted.
She didn't know when that day would be. It could be two hours from now or two years from now. Only time would tell. She thought it would be nice if it was only two minutes from now.
The tension was high in the Command Center. They wanted the girls out of that casino until they could identify where 'The Enforcer' was at and hopefully verify he wasn't Liquid Metal.
John checked his monitors.
"I'm glad they're out of there." John said. "Do you detect anyone following them?"
John Henry's server monitored every Security camera in the Syndicate casino as well as the surrounding areas outside of the casino and in the direction that the girls were headed on the street.
"No." John Henry said. "At least no one followed them from the casino."
John wondered if there was some other threat. They were dealing with Grays and the Syndicate from the casino and there was the faction of Fanatics out there too. There was more than one group that they needed to worry about.
"Is there anyone else?" John asked.
John Henry searched for any possible threat.
"We still don't know where 'The Enforcer' is at." John Henry said. "I'm checking for any other suspicious vehicles."
John was very worried about everything right now. With the possibility of a Liquid Metal Terminator in the area it didn't seem that there could be too much caution.
"I better make sure they take a divergent route to get to the airport." John said.
John Henry could see they'd already taken that precaution.
"I'm tracking them." John Henry said. "They're taking a 'roundabout' route."
John didn't want to tell them to do what they were already doing. He was aware that Cameron didn't like him to look over her shoulder even if he only wanted to help. He wasn't quite sure why she felt that way all the time.
"Maybe I better not say anything." John said. "What's happening at the casino they just left?"
John Henry hadn't noted any changes on the casino floor or around the hotel. The only changes were where the robbery was at in the early hours of the morning.
"There's nothing out of the ordinary." John Henry said. "They've beefed up security around the vault as you might expect."
John really wasn't sure why they would do that right now but he could understand the reason behind it. He doubted there was much money in the vault at this point. His understanding was that the Metal girls took all of the paper money. They only left the coins. He also wondered if maybe more 'collection' funds may have arrived from some of their other illegal endeavors. With Skynet and the Syndicate working in cahoots, anything was possible at this point. It made him wonder about the entire floor that Cameron rented at the Syndicate run casino. He didn't think that she would walk away from her goal that easily.
"That's understandable under the circumstances." John said. "Has Cameron rented any more rooms at any other casino hotel?"
John Henry hadn't detected anything. Since everything else was done through CamNet previously he doubted that he would be a part of it at this point.
"That's unknown." John Henry said. "CamNet hasn't shared that information with me if they have."
John hoped for a little better answer than that. He was sure John Henry could look into it a little further on his own.
"Can't you check yourself?" John asked.
John Henry was sure if he began to 'check' that it would produce a negative reaction directed at him. There were things that he'd been warned about before by CamNet.
"I don't want CamNet to lock me out of their systems or my system." John Henry said. "Ask Cameron if you want to know."
John wasn't about to call Cameron and ask her. He figured there would be an easier way to see where they ended up at.
"WE can track them to see where they go." John said.
As soon as John said that, all the tracking information vanished.
"What happened?" John asked.
John Henry knew right away what it was. It was a warning from CamNet.
"I don't think CamNet likes your questions." John Henry said. "Perhaps it's best not to dwell on it."
John didn't want to seem too nosy even if that's what he was.
"Maybe you're right." John said. "Whatever happens – happens."
In an instant, all the data returned.
It was clear that CamNet was looking out for Cameron and Savannah.
The screens are blinked once and flashed out a single sentence. It was on every monitor for ten seconds before it disappeared.
'What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.' Was the message.
All the monitors returned their previous tasks.
John and John Henry looked at each other but neither one of them commented. They resume their duties as if nothing had happened.
Cam and 'Vegas' were at the airport. They sat in the 4X4 pick up truck. They were ready to roll if necessary to evade any threat. 'Vegas' was very bored with having to wait. She wanted some action.
Hanna and Holly pulled up next to them. They'd been most of the way to the Syndicate casino before they were given the order to turn around. That put them several minutes ahead of the other teams. They were all in Cameron's SUV now and still enroute.
"It's about time." Vegas said.
Holly wasn't even sure what that statement meant. They hadn't delayed or gone anywhere else other than where they were directed to go.
"Time for what?" Holly asked. "WE still need to wait for Cameron and her group."
Cam wanted to take some action now to have everything ready to go when Cameron's team arrived.
"Let's get the rest of the M203 grenade launchers mounted to the weapons you have so we can disperse them." Cam said. "Cameron's team will be here soon."
Hanna wanted to know how things were going to unfold vehicle wise.
"Are we going to have three or four vehicles?" Hanna asked.
Cam already knew what Cameron's thought process would be. She also believed what Savannah's response to it would be.
"Cameron will want four of them." Cam said. "Savannah will tell her that three is better."
Hanna was aware that Savannah watched over the Terminators much better than Cameron did.
"That's because Savannah cares about US." Hanna said. "She doesn't want us damaged or terminated."
Vegas quickly calculated the number of personnel. She saw an opportunity to operate on her own.
"That leaves us with one too many Terminators." Vegas said. "I'll take the minivan then."
Cam wasn't surprised to hear Vegas spout off like that.
"That's the 'Cameron' in you talking." Cam said. "If anyone is a 'team of one', it will be Cameron herself."
Vegas found the inactivity to be more irritating than it was boring. She wanted to make things happen and get the ball rolling.
"So now it's 'hurry up and wait'." Vegas said.
Cam noted several 'appropriate responses' pop up on her HUD. She chose what she believed would be the least offensive one of the group. She actually would have rather chosen the most offensive one to show her displeasure with Vegas.
"You can always go into standby." Cam said.
Vegas looks very irritated at Cam but didn't respond to her statement.
Cam thought that 'Vegas' was a little high strung.
Vanna and Allison went to check on Precious.
They met Claire along the way.
"Hi, Mom." Allison said.
Claire and Vanna looked at each other with that statement. It just sounded 'wrong' for everything that was going on.
"Hi, Allison." Claire said. "Hi, Vanna."
Vanna knew that Claire went to check on Summer and Jan earlier.
"How are the girls?" Vanna asked.
Claire was pleased that they were able to study on their own.
"They're fine." Claire said. "Sarah is with them now."
Allison knew her mother wanted to call Young Allison earlier but she told her to cut her some slack. She wondered if she called her anyway.
"How about Allison?" Allison asked.
Claire needed to think about what Allison told her. She didn't want Young Allison to become upset with her by checking on her all the time. She hoped that Allison would help her out in that regard.
"Can you give her and Anna a call?" Claire asked. "I don't want to seem overbearing. I've already called several times."
Allison was curious to see how they were doing on their own as well.
"Sure." Allison said. "We're going to check on Riley and Precious. You can come along. If Vanna is 'needed', I can make the call with you."
Allison, Claire and Vanna arrived at Derek and Riley's room, they knocked.
Derek opened the door.
"Hey." Derek said.
He stepped aside so they could come in.
The three girls entered.
Pleasantries were exchanged.
"Hey." Vanna said. "How are Riley and Precious?"
They both seemed fine to Derek. That was definitely a big Improvement for Riley. She'd been a nervous wreck the last few weeks by this time of the morning everyday. That wasn't the case yesterday or today. There was a notable difference. He knew what that difference was.
"Riley's a lot better than she has been." Derek said. "I really want to thank you for what you're doing."
Vanna found the last few days of her life to be very rewarding. They were rewarding to her as a person and they were rewarding to her as a female.
"I wouldn't trade this for anything." Vanna said as she touched Allison's lower abdomen. "Well, almost anything."
Allison smiled and took Vanna's hand.
Riley came out. She carried Precious.
"Hello." Riley said.
Further pleasantries were exchanged.
"May I?" Vanna asked as she reached for Precious.
Riley was more than willing to hand off Precious whatever she could. She felt very overwhelmed when she needed to deal with Precious by herself. She was very appreciative for the help the girls provided her.
"Of course." Riley said.
Allison and Claire looked at each other. They both knew Vanna was infatuated with Precious.
"Excuse us." Allison said. "I need to call Allison for my mom."
Riley could see that Claire enlisted Allison to help her out to check on her daughter.
"Mom's are supposed to be worried." Riley said. "That is a good thing."
Allison understood her mother's concern and apprehension. She didn't mind helping her out.
"Someone has to do the 'dirty work'." Allison said. "Come on, Mom."
Allison and Claire left.
They entered the 'new' room adjoining Derek and Riley's room.
Allison closed the door and looked at Claire. She then looked back at the door.
She wanted to say something about Vanna and didn't like saying it behind her back. She thought her mother was the one to speak to about it. Her mother shared with Vanna sometimes. That wasn't a problem for her. It used to be but it wasn't anymore. Once she'd come to the conclusion everyone preferred to be with her mother over her, she figured she couldn't complain. Why would anyone want 'second place' when they could have 'first place'?
"Mom, I'm starting to get worried about her." Allison said.
Claire looked back at the door they'd just come through when they left Riley's quarters.
"Riley looks fine." Claire said.
Allison frowned. She wondered if she'd read more into it than there was. Her mother didn't seem to have a clue that she meant Vanna and not Riley .
"I mean Vanna." Allison said. "She really wants to be a mother."
Claire didn't see anything wrong with Vanna's actions.
"I can see it too." Claire said. "She's doing 'mother' things right now."
Allison was worried how Vanna would feel the more she thought about it. She didn't think that it would be anything good.
"You know she's sterile." Allison said.
Claire knew it was a touchy subject.
"It seems that way." Claire said. "Allison, don't worry about this."
Allison faced her mother with a very concerned look on her face. It was clear it was rooted in her deep love for Vanna.
"I am worried." Allison said. "I'm very worried, Mom."
Claire didn't think this was anything that Allison or Vanna needed to worry about.
"I know that everything will work out in the end." Claire said.
Allison was worried as much about Savannah as she was about Vanna when it came to children.
"We can't keep expecting Savannah to have children and give them up." Allison said. "I couldn't do that. That's not fair to her. You know it has to hurt her."
Claire did know that. She knew Cameron made plans to work with everybody and around any of the personal issues that might arise.
"Please, don't worry about this." Claire said. "Cameron will help everyone that needs to be helped."
Allison moved close to her mother and looked directly into her eyes. There was something that bothered her greatly. It was always in the back of her mind. Everyday that Young Allison and Summer got older, it worried her more and more.
"I don't want Allison bred." Allison said. "Or Summer either."
Claire didn't want that either. That was why she was more than willing to stand up and take the place of all 'three' of her daughters with what needed to be done. She would do whatever was necessary and whatever Cameron wanted done. She knew she could only protect Young Allison for so long but she was adamant that she was going to protect Summer forever.
"I don't think that will happen." Claire said.
Allison was aware that the impossible seemed to happen a lot around the Resistance base.
"Anything is possible around here." Allison said. "I have seen it, so have you."
Claire reached up and touched Allison's cheek.
"I have." Claire said. "I promise to 'take care' of you."
Allison felt reassured by her mother's touch.
"I'm not the only one." Allison said.
Claire continued to touch Allison's cheek. She smiled and looked directly in her eyes. She spoke with all honesty and sincerity.
"I promise to 'take care' of you AND Vanna." Claire said. "I swear it."
Allison felt very reassured by her mother's touch and words.
"Thanks, Mom." Allison said as she took out her phone. "It's time to play 'Big Sister' to myself."
Anna looked at Young Allison as her phone rang, again.
"It will be your mother again." Anna said.
Young Allison looked at her phone.
"No, it's Allison." Young Allison said. "At least it's her phone anyway."
Anna didn't want Young Allison to be rude. She knew why everyone checked on Young Allison. It was because they all cared about her and loved her. She could understand that. She wasn't sure Young Allison always saw it that way. She knew that sometimes Savannah needed to remind her that she would give anything to have her mother check on her. That always seemed to drive the point home for Young Allison about the importance of family and how fleeting it could be.
"Answer it." Anna said.
Young Allison took the call. She wanted to mess with Allison a little bit
"You must be bored if you need to talk to YOURSELF." Young Allison said.
It briefly crossed Allison's mind that she'd heard that only crazy people 'talk to themselves'. She wondered if that was some veiled message directed at her from Young Allison.
"Hello, to you too." Allison said.
Young Allison could see that she'd hit a nerve. That wasn't her intent.
"Everything's fine. Nothing is different." Young Allison said as she glanced at Anna. "My 'other mother' makes sure I eat balanced meals and brush my teeth and wash."
Allison remembered there were a lot of times when she couldn't do any of those things.
"Those things are a luxury in the future." Allison said. "You'll miss all of them when they're gone. "
Young Allison felt more than a little guilty right now.
"I'm sorry." Young Allison said. "I know you're right. It's nice to have a mother and be able to do the other things."
Allison wanted to mention a few things more but decided to keep it simple. There was no need to remind Young Allison what it was like to have a knife held to your throat or a gun the side of your head during an assault. The future was an ugly place.
"We're all trying to make sure YOU and Summer have ALL of them." Allison said.
Young Allison could see that she reminded Allison of the past - the future. She knew where her mind wandered when she returned there. It was never anything good. She wanted to refocus the conversation quickly.
"I know." Young Allison said. "We're monitoring the operation in Las Vegas."
Allison bid the Metal girls farewell when they were in the lab. So far she hadn't heard anything.
"Did anything exciting happen yet?" Allison asked.
Young Allison didn't think it was wise to bring up the speculation about the possibility of a Liquid Metal Terminator being there. Until there was something more concrete, there was no need to discuss it. She knew that would make Allison worry even more about Holly and the other girls. She was worried about them enough herself.
"It's in a lull right now." Young Allison said. "Tell mom everything is good."
Allison was relieved that there was no bad news.
"I will, Allison." Allison said.
There was some more small talk and they hung up.
"That was a 'good call' you made earlier." Anna said.
Young Allison could only think back to how everything started yesterday. Everything should have been so simple with a pleasant day of flying where she could spend time together with Savannah and Cameron.
"Remember, this operation started out when we went out to practice flying." Young Allison said. "Nothing was planned on this operation."
Anna knew that Young Allison had been very active.
"You've done some planning." Anna said.
Young Alison honestly felt it was no big deal. Everything she did just seemed to come natural to her.
"I'm doing what I've been trained to do." Young Allison said.
Anna was aware that statement was only true so far.
"You've exceeded your training." Anna said. "You're ahead of schedule."
Young Allison wasn't sure what the 'schedule' was. It seemed to her there were several different schedules that she was subject to. One of them focused on her mental ability while another one seemed to focus on her physical ability. That was her physical ability not in strength or endurance but the ability to produce offspring for Cameron.
Where Are We Going
I'm filled with remorse
Aren't you plagued with guilt
As around us burns
The love we've built
For things we haven't done
I'm filled with regret
Before we've learned
We already must forget
I'm flooded with sorrow
As love's ship slowly sinks
The person you have become
Really sucks and stinks
It's more than a tragedy
Causing me great anguish
How with love in our grasp
They willingly let it languish
As I step on the gas
You're the one slowing
Do you even care anymore
Where are we going
Nobody