Chapter 1240
Dry Mouth
Young Allison was very frustrated they'd lost track of everyone once they were below the ground.
"We have nothing." Young Allison said. "We don't know where any of them are at. We don't know what they're facing."
Anna received new drone information. It didn't seem like good news.
"One of the drones picked up some smoke on the seventh street." Anna said.
Young Allison switched to the monitor view.
"I can't see it." Young Allison said.
Anna could clearly see it and there was even more.
"It's there." Anna said. "It's increasing."
Young Allison was soon able to spot it.
"I see it now." Young Allison said.
Young Allison wondered what was burning inside the cement pipes. Maybe they'd encountered a Liquid Metal Terminator and needed to use Thermite on it. It seemed like an even worse scenario.
The drone footage zoomed in on the location.
"A manhole cover is moving." Anna said.
Young Allison wanted to be able to respond if it was the Gray.
"Have CamNet prepare for another high altitude minigun gravity fire mission." Young Allison said. "We need to stop him."
Anna wanted to use some caution. What they were about to face was the unknown.
"If the Gray comes out, we'll need to blanket the entire area again with minigun fire to insure a hit." Anna said. "We don't know which direction he'll go when he comes out. It could also be one of our team."
Young Allison figured if it wasn't one of their team, one of them could come out to follow the Gray. She wanted to use some restraint but still be able to act.
"What if one of our team exits a few seconds after the Gray does?" Young Allison asked.
Anna communicated with CamNet. There were still some concerns they would need to deal with.
"CamNet won't target the opening he came out of." Anna said. "They'll only need to worry about a spent ricochet."
Young Allison thought it might be fine for one of the Terminators. Savannah was down there too somewhere.
"Will a ricochet hurt Savannah?" Young Allison asked.
Anna did the math.
"No." Anna said. "It might produce a bruise at that point. It could break the skin. It won't be a bullet wound."
In an instant the manhole cover was pushed off to the side.
"The manhole cover is off." Young Allison said.
Anna spotted the man emerge.
"He is out, it's the Gray." Anna said.
Young Allison wanted him stopped.
"Have CamNet fire on the area." Young Allison said.
Anna received confirmation.
"It's done." Anna said.
Young Allison saw the Gray was hit by gunfire from somewhere.
"He's hit." Young Allison said. "He was just shot."
Anna checked the math. The projectiles from the drone were still falling at this point.
"It is too soon for the projectiles to have reached him." Anna said. "Someone is firing on him from another location. It may be from across the street."
Young Allison saw him go down but he was still moving away on his hands and knees. It looked like he was shot again.
"He is crawling." Young Allison said. "He's been hit again."
He went down hard on the pavement. He wasn't going anywhere at this point.
Anna deduced where the shots originated from. It wasn't something they'd factored into the target location. They wanted a wider target area so they could bring the Gray down.
"The shots came from the other curb opening across from where he came out." Anna said. "One of the team must be in there. I hope they don't exit."
It wasn't what Young Allison wanted to hear. If Savannah emerged, she could be struck and killed. There was no way to stop what was about to happen.
A second later they watched the projectiles hit the street like giant raindrops and hit the Gray. He was down for good now.
Young Allison was relieved none of the team members came into view.
"Was Savannah's SUV hit?" Young Allison asked.
Anna couldn't see any puncture marks in the metal of the SUV.
"It wasn't hit directly." Anna said. "It may have taken ricochets. I can't tell."
Anna wasn't sure what they would be able to do about ricochets anywhere. It was only the original trajectory of the projectile they would be able to control.
More Thermite smoke began to billow out of the curb openings and open manhole.
"There's a lot of smoke coming out of those two openings on each side of the street." Young Allison said.
Anna knew if Savannah was in there, she needed to get out fast. There was still no communication with anyone. For some unknown reason no one responded yet.
"Unless it's a Terminator on the other side of the street opening, they're going to have trouble breathing." Anna said. "It's thick dense smoke."
Young Allison was very worried now. Maybe she had CamNet fired too soon. Savannah could have been hit by ricochets. She could be dead or dying right now. They could have hit her face or head if she was the one who fired at the Gray. There was a deep down sick fear inside of her as she thought about her actions.
"Maybe it's Savannah and she was hit by some of the ricochets." Young Allison said. "They could have hit her anywhere. This is my fault."
Anna thought it was possible there could be some indirect hits. It wasn't Young Allisons fault. She could see Young Allison was very stressed right now. She never looked like that. Even in a test designed for her to fail; she never looked as distressed as she looked right now.
"Savannah may have been hit and is incapacitated." Anna said. "CamNet can't reach anyone. If it was Savannah, she should be able to respond."
Young Allison held it together. She knew whatever was done was done. She already knew what she was going to do to fix it if she needed to. She needed to focus on what was happening now.
"The smoke is getting worse." Young Allison said.
Anna calculated the volume of smoke pouring out of the openings. It didn't look promising.
"If Savannah is incapacitated and not already dead, she'll succumb to smoke inhalation in a short while." Anna said. "It may have already happened."
Young Allison took in what Anna said. It was clear she might be responsible for Savannah's death. It was a very sick feeling. She wanted to be sure she understood everything correctly.
"Are you saying Savannah is dead?" Young Allison asked.
Seconds earlier:
There was a muffled explosion inside the drainage system.
"I think that was a Thermite grenade." Tom said.
There were a series of shots.
"I hear gunfire." Steve said.
There was a second explosion and a scream.
It was clear there was a battle being fought underground. It could only be Savannah and the Gray.
A sense of panic swept over Cammy.
"We have to get to Savannah." Cammy said.
Cammy took off at a run in the direction of the gunfire and explosions.
Cam wanted to make sure they maintain some type of control. They shouldn't all do the same thing. She looked at Steve and Tom.
"I want you two get back up to the surface and head toward the seventh street." Cam said. "Watch for any threats and the Gray."
Cam took off after Cammy.
Steve and Tom headed for the nearest manhole.
The Terminators were all moving at their fastest speed possible in the close quarters of the drainage system. Savannah was in a firefight. They needed to assist her.
Cammy ran as fast as she could in the confined space. She couldn't tell if the scream was from a male or female. It was a scream of agony. Someone was either shot or on fire.
She reached the drain pipe from the seventh street. There was already smoke billowing out of it. She heard someone behind her. It was Cam.
"It looks like Thermite smoke." Cam said.
Cammy needed to get to Savannah. She wouldn't be able to breathe in smoke like that. She might have already been shot or suffered some burns at this point.
Cammy started to go up the pipe.
There was most likely a raging inferno in front of her.
Cam grabbed her.
"Cammy, you'll be damaged." Cam said.
Cammy was aware there were other chassis available to her if her current one was destroyed. More than likely the sheath would be burnt off of it. It didn't matter. There was a copy of her program which was updated a few days ago. She would gladly trade a few days' time to make sure Savannah survived. She needed to go help Savannah. Every second would count.
"Let go of me." Cammy said. "I need to get to Savannah."
Cam held Cammy firm. She was glad she'd retrieved her Taser earlier. She thought she was going to need to use it on Cammy if she tried to go into the raging inferno.
"Listen." Cam said.
They could hear quiet pistol rounds that were soon fired. It sounded like Savannah was still in the fight. There were a lot of them fired in a very short time span. Maybe her silencer was damaged.
"It must be Savannah." Cammy said. "There's no return fire."
Cam looked up the pipe to the last street.
"We need to go up to the surface on the eighth street." Cam said.
Cammy looked at the raging inferno in the seventh street drain pipe. Cam was correct. She could see she would be severely damaged if she went that way. Steve and Tom were already headed out on the sixth street behind them.
"Let's go." Cammy said and took off at a run.
Cam and Cammy headed for the storm drain entrance on the eighth street. They needed to get to the surface and go assist Savannah. It might only be a rescue mission if they didn't take too long. If they were delayed, it might turn into a recovery operation.
Cammy already knew what she was going to do if Savannah was dead. She knew Young Allison would help her.
Allison was with John Henry in the Command Center. She thought she could detect some smoke from one of the drone images. The manhole cover moved on one side of the seventh street.
"I see the Gray." Allison said.
John Henry expected CamNet to shoot at him again.
"CamNet is going to fire on him like before." John Henry said.
Allison didn't think it was a good idea.
"What if one of our people follows him out?" Allison asked.
John Henry knew there was a time lag involved.
"I don't know." John Henry said. "CamNet shouldn't target the opening."
Allison remembered seeing the ricochets before against the concrete.
"You saw all the ricochets in the flood control channel." Allison said. "They went everywhere."
John Henry didn't think he had much control over what was about to happen. He watched what he could see in real time. He saw the Gray take a round.
"He is hit." John Henry said. "The shot he was just hit by came from somewhere else. He's down."
They saw the Gray still try to crawl away.
Allison wondered what happened. She was a little confused. There was no one else in sight.
"Where was he hit from?" Allison asked. "There's a lot more smoke now too."
The Gray went down again and stayed down.
"He was hit again." John Henry said. "I think it's one of our team in the storm drain across the street from where he came out at."
A second later the 'metal hail' projectiles began to hit the asphalt and sidewalk. They ricocheted in all directions. There were sparks with some of the impacts. Most of those were on the concrete.
John Henry tried to reach any of their team. There was no response. Whoever fired on the Gray should be able to communicate.
"I can't reach whoever it is on our team who shot him." John Henry said.
Allison feared the worst. The volume of a black smoke seemed to intensify.
"Maybe they were hit by some of the ricochets." Allison said. "Look at all the smoke now."
John Henry received a drone image of Steve and Tom as they came out of a manhole one street to the north of where the Gray was taken down.
"I see Steve and Tom coming up on from below the sixth street." John Henry said. "They're headed to where the Gray is."
John Henry received a communication from them. It wasn't the report he wanted to hear.
"They've reported Savannah has engaged the Gray. Cam and Cammy are still in the system along with Savannah. They're trying to reach her." John Henry said. "There were explosions and a fire along with multiple gunshots."
Allison just knew it was Savannah where the ricochets were and all the smoke.
"It means Savannah is the one where all the action is then." Allison said. "She's right in the middle of it."
John Henry still couldn't contact Savannah. It was a bad sign.
"I can't reach Savannah." John Henry said. "She may have been hit or succumbed to smoke inhalation."
It took a second for Allison to realize what John Henry just said. She felt sick. She would need to get a hold of Young Allison if it was the case. She wanted to make sure she fully understood John Henry.
"Are you saying Savannah is dead?" Allison asked.
Jim and Ally were in the Control Center on the ship.
They followed the operation the team was on near the old newspaper plant.
They listened to the reports from John Henry and CamNet.
There wasn't much for them to say.
Ally didn't like the way events unfolded.
"We should be there backing them up." Ally said.
Jim reminded her they were on protection duty for John.
"This is our assignment." Jim said. "It's important too."
Ally saw it a little differently.
"If this doesn't turn out better real soon, how are all these people here going to feel?" Ally asked.
Jim knew it would cause a major problem. He also knew it could happen on any operation at any time with anyone. They all couldn't go on every operation. There'd been plenty of close calls in the past. Anything could go wrong at any time or anywhere. The current situation should require a limited release of information.
"We can't tell them." Jim said.
Ally pointed out Cameron was bound to show up sooner rather than later.
"Cameron's going to be in here soon." Ally said. "She's going to know."
Jim wanted to sit tight for now. He was pretty sure there would be some TDE activity if it became necessary.
"We need to let this play out some." Jim said. "You know there'll be a temporal mission if it's needed."
Ally thought it should have already happened.
"Shouldn't we have seen it by now?" Ally asked.
Jim thought it was still too early to make any determination.
"I don't know." Jim said. "Other than a dead Gray and a lot of smoke, there's not a whole lot else to see or go on."
Ally soon spotted Tom and Steve. They were alone and they were in a hurry. She noticed they were fully clothed. If there'd been some type of temporal mission, they weren't part of it.
"I see Steve and Tom." Ally said. "Where are Cam, Cammy and Savannah?"
They listened to the report from Steve and Tom as they hurried to the seventh street.
It seemed to Ally it was Savannah who did all the fighting.
"Their report didn't have any encouraging news." Ally said.
Jim thought it sounded terminal.
"No it didn't." Jim said. "It appears Savannah took down the Gray before she was hit with ricochets or expired from smoke inhalation."
There was a 'feeling' Ally felt from deep inside her. It wasn't a good feeling. She also remembered there'd been reports of shots fired earlier from a non silenced weapon.
Ally wanted to make sure of what Jim indicated. If it was what she understood, she needed to contact Young Allison.
"Are you saying that Savannah is dead?" Ally asked.
Sarah and Kyle finished a round of miniature golf. Hanna was there with them.
Kyle wasn't very pleased about his performance on the course.
Sarah wanted to make things up to Kyle. She thought he could do it better back in their room.
Hanna led Kyle and Sarah back to their suite. They approached Derek's suite. It was just outside the private area and the giant suites.
"Are Derek and Riley in there?" Kyle asked.
Hanna listened. She could tell what Derek was doing to Riley.
"Yes, is all I'll say about it." Hanna said. "I haven't listened to anything else."
Sarah liked the tact Hanna used.
"I like it." Sarah said. "She knows when to use discretion."
Hanna knew all the Terminators used restraint in personal affairs.
"We all do the same thing for everyone." Hanna said. "We like our private moments as well."
Kyle smiled at the thought.
"She does have a point there." Kyle said.
They were at the door of the private area. Hanna was surprised no one opened it. Both Jim and Ally should be there. She was unsure where Sheila was at this point.
Hanna opened the door to the private area and then the door to their suite.
Sarah wanted to make her intentions clear.
"We're going to be here until it is time to get dressed up for dinner." Sarah said.
It seemed like a long time to Hanna for Kyle to 'operate'. She tried to indicate to Sarah there were other things they could do as well.
"It's still a few hours away." Hanna said.
Kyle wondered about what was in the main theater for tonight's performance. He looked at the little newspaper in the room
"Is there only a comedian tonight in the main theater?" Kyle asked.
Hanna was sure everyone liked the performance yesterday. She wasn't so sure they would like the one tonight.
"Yes." Hanna said.
Sarah never cared much for the 'funny boys'. It just wasn't her cup of tea. She had other considerations as well.
"I don't know how it will compare to last night." Sarah said. "I need to worry about Jan as well."
Hanna would have Holly get Summer and Jan ready to allow Sarah and Kyle some more 'alone time'.
"I'll ask Holly to make sure Jan is dressed properly for dinner." Hanna said.
Sarah felt bad about it.
"It's my job." Sarah said. "I don't know what I was thinking."
Hanna tried to make a joke about it.
"Maybe you were thinking it would be nice to be a teenager again." Hanna said.
Sarah laughed. She thought it was funny. She wondered if maybe Hanna would be better than the comedian if they put her up on stage. It did make her think about how pristine her body was as a teenager. There weren't any major scars on it at all. Currently, it was a much different story. She didn't want to think about how each one got there either. She thought back to her school days instead.
"I think it would be interesting." Sarah said.
Kyle thought about being a teenager in the Wastelands. He wouldn't want to relive the experience ever again. He hoped to be able to prevent it for his daughter. He looked at Sarah.
"I like where I am now." Kyle said.
Sarah smiled at Kyle.
She wanted to get Jan ready herself.
"Have Holly call us before the girls come back." Sarah said.
Hanna didn't think it was necessary. She would follow Sarah's instructions.
"I'll take care of it." Hanna said.
Sarah actually looked forward to dressing Jan up. It wasn't something she ever really had the opportunity to do before. She saw there were several dresses for Jan to wear. Maybe it would be a mother-daughter bonding experience.
"Thanks." Sarah said.
Sarah and Kyle disappeared into their suite.
Hanna headed for the Control Center. She wanted to find out what went wrong. She was sure something must have.
Derek was able to get Riley to where she wanted to go. It had been a long time since he'd been able to do it that way.
Riley felt very pleased.
"That was great, Derek." Riley said. "I'm tired."
Derek wanted to take a breather. He wanted to pick his pills up off of the floor.
"We can rest for a little bit." Derek said. "I'm a little beat too."
Riley could see Derek wasn't quite himself. She wondered what it would be like to have a Terminator in their life. It was a pleasant thought as she drifted off to sleep.
Derek relaxed and waited for Riley to take a nap. It took longer than he'd hoped. He tried not to drift off before she did. He glanced down at the blanket on the floor. It covered his pills. He needed to collect them and take one. Maybe he would take a few. He was unsure what the dose was. Maybe he'd better try only one first.
As soon as he heard Riley almost snore he made his move. He reached down and moved the blanket. He started to pick the pills up. There were supposed to be thirty in the bottle. So far he'd only spotted twenty seven. He securely put the lid on the bottle. He didn't want the rest to spill out again as he searched for the last three pills.
He found two more. He heard Riley move and quickly jammed one of them in his mouth. It was small. It was hard to swallow. He was sure it was because he'd developed 'dry mouth' in his fear of getting caught doing what he was doing. He didn't want to seem like he was inadequate. He couldn't think of a quicker way to get replaced. Who would want a partner who couldn't satisfy them in bed?
Derek put the other pill in the bottle and hid it with his personal gear. He went back to look for the last pill. He didn't want Riley to catch him looking for it. He didn't want Riley to look for it on her own if she suspected something. He thought he would need to look for it later.
He didn't want Riley to wake up for at least thirty minutes. Maybe it was an hour until the pill kicked in.
Now he wished he would have chewed it up some first to get the medicine to be absorbed quicker.
He quickly looked again for the last pill. He couldn't find it. He lay back down on the bed. He soon drifted off and joined Riley in slumber.
Gail led Jesse and Claire out of the main theater. Since they'd used the lower exit, they were on deck six. They'd actually entered the casino from deck seven and went down the large staircase. She wanted to show them a few things. They were on three different decks. The closest one to their location was the casino. Since it was shut down right now, all the machines and excitement of the people playing wasn't there. It just seemed empty and dead.
Claire was a little disappointed with the casino. For some reason she thought it would be bigger. There was no one there and not much was happening. There were a few of the machines which made noise and the lights flashed on them. She hadn't been to a casino in quite a while. She didn't think she'd miss much. Maybe if there were people there and everything was happening, it would be a little different. She was sure it would all change once the ship was at sea.
"I'm sure this place livens up after dinner." Claire said. "I know some people just like to play for the excitement of it all."
None of it looked very exciting to Gail.
"I don't know why Sheila likes to play the games so much." Gail said.
Jesse figured it was from the 'Neural Interface'. She always liked to be 'top dog' in whatever she did.
"She must get it from me." Jesse said. "You know I always like a challenge, especially if it's one to 'prove' myself."
Gail tilted her head slightly. She knew Jesse liked to be number one in bed.
"I thought it was only if it was a sexual challenge." Gail said.
Jesse thought back some into the sewer of her life.
"I've faced plenty of challenges there." Jesse said.
Claire moved close to Jesse and took her arm.
"We can face them together now." Claire said. "The three of us can."
Gail smiled when Claire included her. She couldn't fault Jesse and Claire's growing relationship. It was no different than how she felt about Savannah. They all still had their 'partners' and all the other girls too. It was nice to have someone 'special' on top of it all as well.
She led them to the atrium. The base of it was on deck five. It was only one deck down.
Gail glanced at Claire. She looked at the stairway and then at the elevator.
Claire would have been happy to take the elevator. She didn't want to seem like a wimp in front of Jesse and Gail. They only needed to go down one floor.
"I'm good with the stairs for one deck, especially when it's to go down." Claire said.
Jesse snapped her head around to see if Claire made a joke. It didn't look like it. It was funny anyway.
"I'm always ready to go down." Jesse said.
Gail could speak from experience. Jesse was always ready.
The three of them went down the stairs. It didn't take very long at all. They walked out to the center of deck five and looked up. It was impressive to look up at the big open space and see the floors above. They looked around at everything where they were at.
Gail wanted them to make sure they understood their options
"There are multiple food options available on this deck. Do you want any pastry, pizza or a drink?" Gail asked. "There are quite a few choices from coffee to fruit juice."
It sounded good to Claire. To look at everything available, as well as taking in all the different smells, was very alluring. She needed to give herself a reminder about what was to come. She knew dinner wasn't far off.
"When will we eat dinner?" Claire asked.
Gail didn't think it was too soon.
"It's still a few hours away." Gail said.
Claire needed to keep track of her priorities as well as her responsibilities. She wanted to dress Summer up when it was time.
"I'll need to get Summer ready for dinner." Claire said.
Gail thought everyone was going to look even more pretty tonight than they normally did.
"Tonight is 'dress up' night." Gail said. "You're all going to look very beautiful."
Jesse wasn't used to fancy clothes. She was actually more comfortable naked.
"I'm going to need both of your help." Jesse said. "I'm used to taking clothes off, not putting them on."
Claire looked at Jesse and smiled about her statement.
"I think you'll do fine with both." Claire said. "It will be just like wrapping a present up."
Jesse was good with it as long as Claire unwrapped her later on.
Claire figured she would need some assistance too. She didn't know how Young Allison was able to do it so quickly and perfectly when she fixed herself up. She always did it for Cameron and Savannah. It did bother her some when she saw her do it for John. She still hoped 'it' was a few years off. She wouldn't mind taking cuts and keep John's focused attention on her. She shook her head to clear it. She needed to refocus.
"Hanna will help us." Claire said. "I need a lot of help too."
They looked around for a few minutes.
"What's next?" Jesse asked.
Gail led them out of the atrium.
"There are a few more areas to see." Gail said. "We have the entire Promenade deck with the rear theater. There's also the main dining room."
"Let's go." Claire said.
Gail started for the stairway. She paused and looked back at Jesse and Claire.
"We need to go up two decks." Gail said.
Jesse looked at Claire.
"We can take the elevator." Jesse said.
Claire smiled at Jesse. Sometimes it was nice to have help.
Vanna finished nursing Precious.
Samantha wanted to point out to Vanna there were several options available to her. She looked forward to being able to watch over Precious herself.
"You can join Allison if you want." Samantha said.
Vanna wanted to see Allison. She needed to remind herself about her previous commitment. She'd promised Riley she would look after her daughter. She didn't want to shirk her duties and responsibilities.
"I told Riley I'd take care of Precious." Vanna said.
Samantha felt it was her job too. It's what she'd done since her activation.
"You have been." Samantha said. "I have the same function as well."
Vanna's top was still open.
"Maybe I need to stay here for a while." Vanna said.
"You can rest." Samantha said. "Precious is asleep now. She should sleep for a while before she needs to be changed."
Vanna looked down at her exposed breasts.
"I still have a little spray coming out." Vanna said. "I need a tissue."
Samantha and Vanna looked at each other.
"Precious won't need to nurse for a few hours." Samantha said. "I can take care of it for you."
Vanna slipped her top off.
"I have another spot that could use some attention after this." Vanna said.
Samantha smiled at Vanna.
"I have one too." Samantha said.
The two girls stripped each other.
Vanna led Samantha to the bed.
"I'll work on you first." Samantha said.
Vanna lay down and Samantha started.
"Don't stop." Vanna whispered in Samantha's ear.
Savannah needed to get out of the storm drain. The smoke was thick and blinding. She couldn't breathe properly. It was hard to think.
She didn't believe there was going to be any more gunfire. She wondered why her M9 made noise than usually with the silencer on it. She noticed an open furrow at an angle cut across it. It must have been hit with a round from the Gray. She holstered her M9 and pushed on the manhole cover again. It barely moved.
The smoke was intense. She could hardly see or even breathe at this point. She was coughing and gasping for air. She felt like she was choking. She was sure she was going to blackout soon. If it happened while she was trapped in there, she was 'done'.
Savannah was in a tight three foot high space. She coughed continuously. There were no other avenues of escape open to her. She needed to get the manhole cover off and get out of the storm drain system. She needed to do it in the next few seconds. She placed her back, right below her shoulders, against the manhole cover and pushed with her legs and back both at the same time. She hoped it wasn't going to hurt the baby. She knew if she didn't get out now, the smoke was going to kill her.
Her mind was a little clouded now. There was some other problem she needed to worry about too.
What was it?
It was the liquid running into the drain.
Was it gasoline?
Maybe the SUV was hit with a ricochet that bounced up and pierced the fuel tank.
Her mind was very clouded right now.
Maybe the Gray was waiting for her. He could see the black smoke pouring out of both sides of the street through the storm drain openings. He knew she couldn't go back the way she'd come because of the burning Thermite. All he needed to do was sit there and wait. She wondered if he would have a smile on his face when he shot her.
She needed to move. The cards would land where they fell.
Death was there right now for her if she didn't.
Hank took up his position in the room with the explosives.
Larry took up his position in the storeroom where the two dead men had been moved.
They waited for the Grays to arrive. They could hear them talking as they approached. None of them sounded very content.
"Why do we have to do this?" The third man asked.
"It's because we're not the boss." The second man said.
"You know this is nothing but a glitch." The third man said.
"Maybe something is wrong." The fourth man said.
"What could be wrong?" The second man asked. "We're in a secure area."
"What if we're not?" The fourth man asked.
Hank and Larry waited as the voices drew closer. The Grays were going to walk right by them.
"Look, don't let the 'boogeyman' get the best of you." The second man said.
"I just think it's strange that we can't contact anyone." The fourth man said. "Everyone we sent out never came back either."
Hank and Larry quietly communicated with each other.
It was time.
The female Fanatic spotted several old wooden pallets. She carefully pulled two of them over and placed one on top of the other. She didn't want to get any splinters in her hands. She stepped up on top of the pallets and slowly lifted her head over the back of the wall. She didn't like what she saw.
There were two vehicles parked behind the building. She didn't spot anyone in either one of them. It indicated they were inside of the building. She really didn't know what they would find. They'd only used it as a staging area for a week before they'd moved to a more secure location.
She thought about the explosion at the other place and all of her associates being killed. Maybe they should have stayed in the building she was currently at. At least it was still standing.
She wanted a closer look at what was going on inside of the building. She took one of the pallets and turned it upright. She would use it as a ladder to get up over the top of the wall.
The female Fanatic moved to the top of the pallet. She made it over the wall easily. She dropped down on the other side. She quickly moved to the west side of the property and hugged the fence and she advanced towards the building.
There were surveillance cameras located around the building. She didn't know if they were activated or not. She did know there was a blind spot along the side where she currently moved. The blind spot only lasted so long. As she got closer to the building, the blind spot would disappear.
She could gamble the security system wasn't turned on or perhaps no one was monitoring it. She seriously considered going back the way she'd come and return with the van. If they weren't followers of SkyMaster, they were the enemy.
She moved behind some barrels near the rear of the building. She decided to make a dash for it.
Wait.
The rear door of the building opened.
She was sure she'd just been made.
Larry and Hank both emerged from their places of concealment.
The Grays didn't even have time to react. All three of them were shot where they stood.
They quickly drug the bodies into the storeroom with the other two bodies.
"I think it was just like a baseball inning." Larry said.
Hank tilted his head slightly.
"How is that?" Hank asked.
Larry indicated the store room.
"It was three up and then three down." Larry said.
Based upon their earlier observation, there should only be one individual left. It was the individual the other Grays referred to as the 'boss'.
They moved towards the room the last Gray was in. It was some type of operational center.
"I can't believe none of this crap works with all of the technology available." The 'boss' muttered to himself.
Hank and Larry boldly strode into the room.
The 'boss' looked up. There was a look of astonishment on his face. He quickly realized why everything was the way it was. They were under attack.
"Who are you?" The 'boss' asked.
Larry remembered what one of the men in the passageway just said.
"We're the 'boogeyman'." Larry said.
Hank grabbed the 'boss' and pulled him off into the corner.
Larry looked over the equipment. He started to collect the hard drives.
Hank began to interrogate the 'boss', Terminator Style. He wanted to know what was in the two buildings on the outside of where they were at. He also wanted to know where the new facility was located. He wanted to know why it was bunker buster proof.
"I'll never tell you anything." The 'boss' gasped.
Hank looked at the man with an expressionless face.
"Wrong, you'll tell me everything." Hank said.
The interrogation continued.
The female Fanatic ducked back down behind the barrels. She pulled out her pistol. She wasn't going down without a fight. She checked her poison tooth. It was loose and ready to be activated. She didn't plan to go down any other way either. She wasn't going to end up on the 'comfort bunk', well, alive anyway.
Three men exited the building.
She didn't know if they would get into one vehicle or both vehicles. If they got into both vehicles and drove away, it would indicate the building may be empty.
It wasn't to be the case. The three men entered one of the vehicles and drove away.
Damn.
As soon as the vehicle went around the side of the building, she made her move. She ran up to the rear of the building. The rear door wasn't closed tightly. It was a problem which existed when she was there originally. Someone needed to turn the handle to make it close properly. They could slam it closed as well.
The female Fanatic held her pistol ready as she pushed the door open. She searched for a target as she entered the building.
Dry Mouth
Happy go lucky
Is the motto for a few
They don't care if
They stir up a witches' brew
For those uncaring people
Trouble is their middle name
They hurt and they maim
For them life is just a game
What some have offered
Is less than others take
It doesn't take long
To see it was a mistake
What goes around
Eventually comes around
It often only stops
When one's in the ground
Don't seem surprised
When things go south
It's what was done
Why there's now a 'dry mouth'
Nobody