Chapter 1496
Especially You
John was still upset because they'd encountered another Skynet related mine. Summer reassured him they were 'smarter now'. He started to wonder what it really meant.
They lost the drone image.
"What happened to the drone?" John asked.
John Henry was about to tell John what was happening elsewhere.
Summer figured it would cause a problem.
"It's been withdrawn for safety reasons." Summer said. "We found what we were looking for. The mine is a fixed location."
John liked the idea. He didn't want to tip their hand. There was always the chance Skynet would know it was being watched.
"It's a good idea for now." John said. "The mine isn't going anywhere."
John Henry looked over at Summer. He wasn't sure how accurate her statement was…. CamNet told him to not worry about it.
Summer monitored what the girls were up to at the beach, as well as with Allison's and Kyle's teams. Gail and Hanna were right behind them. She was the one who'd pulled the drone away and redirected it. It seemed it was going to be needed for action elsewhere.
Allison pulled over and then turned into an empty parking lot. She figured it would be easier to talk with the other Resistance SUV once they stopped away from the traffic. She'd cut off a car to make her turn. There were some harsh words and hand gestures. The nonverbal 'communication' was extremely explicit.
Cam and Holly both received a transmission from Kyle's vehicle. It was about to pull into the parking lot behind them.
"The car Allison cut off is coming back." Jim said.
Cam and Holly both looked back.
"Here comes trouble." Cam said. "The car is returning."
Allison looked over. She touched her Model 66.
"It will be trouble for them." Allison said.
Holly looked at her phone. She viewed a satellite image. She wanted to get a layout of the area.
"Keep going around the back of the building on the left." Holly said. "It's a dead end parking lot surrounded in the rear by industrial buildings. It's the perfect 'killing field'."
Vanna could see things were about to get out of control.
"Nobody needs to die because of bad driving." Vanna said.
Holly didn't want Vanna to 'rag' on Allison and her driving.
"People die all the time from bad driving." Holly said.
Vanna felt she'd made her point. The whole incident didn't need to happen. It surely didn't need to escalate.
"Allison knows what I mean." Vanna said.
Cam looked back. There appeared to be more trouble than they'd first anticipated.
"There's a second car with them." Cam said. "They look like 'gang bangers'."
Vanna quickly changed her assessment. It was time for justice. She was aware of what most of those individuals who survived J-Day became.
"Scavengers…." Vanna said. "Let's burn them."
Cam reached in the back of the SUV and brought out two Thermite grenades.
Vanna saw Cam missed her slang. She'd taken her statement quite literally.
"Those will work too." Vanna said.
Cam tilted her head slightly.
The two cars followed them into the secluded area.
"Kyle's holding at the entrance into this area." Cam said. "They'll make sure the way out stays open and the enemy doesn't escape. They won't allow any additional enemy vehicles to pass either."
Allison would have liked the reinforcements closer. They were well armed in their SUV.
"We can take them ourselves." Allison said.
Jim and Bob called out the threats and coordinated with Holly and Cam.
Derek quickly spotted the additional players.
"There are two cars." Derek said.
Bob didn't want Kyle to join the other team.
"We need to hold back here." Bob said. "We'll make sure the way out stays open."
Kyle hoped for a little more direct action.
"We should go in and back them up." Kyle said.
CamNet previously informed Bob there were two more Terminators behind them. She wanted to keep it an all female affair.
"There's more help on the way." Bob said.
Another SUV turned into the parking lot.
It passed them and sped after the other two cars.
Derek was a little surprised to see them. He saw who it was right away.
"It was Gail and Hanna." Derek said. "We can still go closer to back them up."
Jim was informed the females liked to act together.
"The girls want to clean their own house." Jim said.
Kyle and Derek could understand it. The two cars looked like gang members. It meant future Scavengers. It was going to be personal on a different level.
"I think we're about to see a body count rung up." Kyle said.
Derek worried more gang members would show up. It was what a gang was all about anyway.
"Let's keep a lookout." Derek said. "They may have called for help."
CamNet jammed everything around them as soon as the second hostile car was identified.
"There's a jamming field in place." Bob said.
Kyle was pleased to see the entire team was in on it.
"John Henry is on the ball." Kyle said.
Jim picked up a new plus. There were additional lethal resources available to them.
"It's CamNet who is behind it." Jim said. "We have drone coverage as well."
Kyle and Derek looked at their phones while Bob and Jim kept watch around them.
Gail and Hanna closed up on the other two teams rapidly.
They communicated with Cam, Holly, Jim and Bob. They set up how things were going to be played out.
They moved up on Kyle's SUV and passed it. They would remain on sentry duty. They were a short distance behind the other two cars which entered the 'kill zone'.
Gail thought she could take pre-emptive action. She'd done something similar a very short time ago.
"Let's give them a chance to get out of their cars." Gail said. "I'll run them down."
Hanna didn't like the idea. Maybe it was why when Gail and Jesse went out, they always returned in a different vehicle. 'Hit and run' incidents happened all of the time. She was aware a large percentage of those were actually illegal aliens who were afraid they would be deported if they stuck around after an accident. They usually drove without a license, insurance or registration. All were additional violations of the law.
In their case, a traffic incident wouldn't be scrutinized by the authorities as would bullet wounds.
"It may wreck the SUV. There are at least four of them." Hanna said.
Gail didn't think it would be a problem. There were other even more lethal options available to them.
"We can always use our weapons." Gail said.
Hanna hoped to contain the response
"We are weapons." Hanna said.
Gail liked when thugs realized she was more powerful than them. Even all of them combined. She didn't necessarily show off, but simply used her own 'natural ability'. It was at that point, the future Scavengers always knew they were doomed.
"It's what I meant." Gail said. "The thugs panic when they see how powerless they really are. The threat of the mob, or gang, doesn't mean anything when they're up against a superior force, even if the force only consists of one."
Hanna thought Gail looked much more cheerful now. She was just glad Sheila wasn't along with them. She knew it would turn into a real bloodbath, quite literally.
Cammy led the group towards the volleyball court. There were several groups of girls playing.
"There's a lot of 'bouncing' going on there." Ally said.
Mary could see it wasn't regulated to the volleyballs either.
"I'll say." Mary said.
Cam assessed the level of play. It was a task they could easily accomplish and dominate.
"We're superior to all of them." Cammy said.
Sheila assessed the beauty factor.
"We're better looking too." Sheila said.
Leticia smiled at 'Sue'.
"Especially you are." Leticia whispered.
Ally and Cammy glanced over.
Cammy moved the girls under a small cabana with a water station in it.
Laura wanted to loosen things up a little more.
"I could use another drink." Laura said.
Ally scanned her with a passing touch.
"Maybe water is better for right now." Ally said. "You don't want to overdo it too early."
Mary was all too familiar with Laura 'overdoing' it. She knew what would happen.
"If she's passed out, she won't be able to make love." Mary said.
Laura was aware she'd left Mary hanging more than a few times. It was never her intent. It was always something which just happened.
"I guess I do overdo it sometimes." Laura said.
Mary remembered how 'Peggy' and 'Sue' looked and acted with the two men who'd stripped Laura on the ship when she'd 'overdone' it. In retrospect she realized they were going to kill the men until the big security guard arrived. He was part of their team and how they knew where to find Laura. It all made sense now. She could see 'Sue' liked to kill. She'd witnessed first hand what she'd done to the two women sex traffickers. She even left them alive to burn to death. She could have killed them first, but she didn't. 'Sue' wanted them to suffer. Based upon what could have happened to Leticia and her, she really couldn't disagree.
"You need to use some moderation." Mary said.
Cammy felt Mary's statement applied to all of the girls.
"Don't let the alcohol play with your mind." Cammy said.
Mary thought maybe she'd zoned out for a little bit.
"I'm good." Mary said. "She won't be."
Mary indicated Laura.
Leticia was aware how Laura could get carried away at times.
"We need to watch over her." Leticia said.
Cammy noted Leticia seemed the least affected by her drinks. She made a point to scan her. Her alcohol level was much lower. She figured Sheila didn't make her drinks 'doubles' like she did for Mary and Laura. It was probably because Leticia would do anything Sheila asked her to do already. From what she'd heard, Leticia continued to volunteer herself for everything as it was.
She was all for cycling the three girls through John's bed. She didn't want Savannah around them. She could see the three girls would all be drawn to Savannah as she made love to them. Maybe she was being too possessive. Besides, Savannah was with that Bitch, Cameron, right now. CamNet blocked her from seeing what they were up to earlier.
Ally made sure the three girls all drank some cool water and stayed hydrated. The sunscreen was sufficient on them. They'd all put some on them.
The team which lost the volleyball game left.
"It looks like we're up." Sheila said.
Leticia watched the teams play. She could see the competition was very skillful.
"The other team is good." Leticia said.
Sheila didn't think it was a problem.
"It won't take us long to learn." Sheila said.
Her statement made Leticia a little worried.
"Have you ever played before?" Leticia asked.
Sheila tilted her head slightly.
"How hard can it be?" Sheila asked. "I never played horseshoes until a short time ago either. I scored every time."
Mary, Laura and Leticia all played volleyball before.
None of the Metal girls played any games with balls before, except for when Cameron used their chassis….
Allison drove the SUV to the rear of the enclosed area. She turned around and backed up so she'd be facing the two cars when they arrived.
Cam was pleased to see images from a drone. It meant they could either have 'metal hail', or an outright missile strike if it was necessary.
"We have drone coverage." Cam said.
Vanna worried about her long time lover.
"Allison needs to remain in the SUV." Vanna said.
Holly made sure Allison wore her vest.
Cam was just as concerned for Vanna.
"You will too." Cam said.
Vanna looked at the drone footage. She saw Hanna and Gail were behind the two cars of gang members.
"I see I'll be represented." Vanna said.
Allison looked at Cam and smiled.
"So will I." Allison said.
The two cars which followed Allison's SUV into the rear area slowed. They didn't know why the SUV they were after would go there. They wanted to teach the Bitch who almost messed up their ride a lesson. They planned to slash her tires and leave her stranded. Their 'homeboys' were a rougher crew. They may want to do a 'little more'. It looked like they were in a secluded area now. They could all get some 'trim'. No one would even hear the Bitch scream, back where they were at. What a stupid Bitch.
They pulled into the back area. They saw what looked like the Bitch standing there in front of the SUV. It looked like she wanted to challenge them! She was pretty good looking too.
The second car of punks moved up alongside of them.
They both crept forward slowly. When they reached the middle of the open area of the parking lot there were two loud 'pop' noises. They almost sounded as one.
"I just got a flat." The first punk said.
It seemed the car next to them did as well.
One of the front tires on both of the cars went flat.
"The Bitch must have done something." The second punk said. "I'm going to really teach her a lesson. First she disrespected us. Now she damaged our cars too."
They saw a second female next to the first one now. They could see she was well built.
"No." The first punk said. "We're going to teach both of them a lesson they'll never forget."
The four men got out of the two cars and looked at their flat front tires.
The two females approached them.
"Nice day for a walk." Cam said.
The gang bangers were surprised the two hot chicks approached them. They must be stupid. Didn't they know they were about to get 'done'?
"You sluts are going to pay for this, one way or another." The first punk said. "You're going to give us your money and then you're going to give us a 'little more'."
The other three punks laughed.
"Will make them change the tires too." The second punk said.
Cam offered them 'a way out'. It was something Vanna asked her to do. She figured it was a waste of time, but she would give it a try anyway.
"Change your flat tires and leave." Cam said. "No one gets hurt that way. This is your one, and final warning. What happens next is on you. You'll realize your needless aggressive mood is what put you in the predicament you're in."
The street punks didn't like mouthy females.
"That Puta is loco." The third punk said.
The four punks laughed.
"I don't think it's us who's going to get hurt." The first punk said. "You'll be lucky if you can even walk when we're done with you."
The four punks laughed as they made lewd comments and 'cat calls'.
"That's if we even let you sluts live." The forth punk said.
Cam figured the comment sealed their fate. It was clear the punks were willing to play for keeps. The punks didn't know they currently held a losing hand. It was about to get worse.
"Let's cut on their faces too." The third punk said. "Let's see if they think they're so good looking then."
Gail and Hanna arrived with their doors ajar a few seconds ago. The SUV was turned off and in 'Neutral'. They'd arrived quietly. They exited the SUV just as quietly. They left their doors open so there was no noise.
Two of the men produced knives.
"Strip…." The fourth punk said. "The longer you take to do it, the more I'm going to use this knife on your pretty little face."
The third punk seemed even excited about the impending violence.
"Let's take the tips of their noses." The third punk said. "I want them marked for life."
The four punks laughed.
Gail and Hanna heard what the men said. They moved up behind them. They each smashed the shoulder of the man who held the knife. Both men went down from the blow and force of the bone breaking hit. They'd both used a forceful hit. The arm on both men was rendered useless. They might even need to be amputated due to the massive damage. They shouldn't have pulled weapons on the Metal girls.
The laughs faded from their mouths as they blacked out from the pain and shock.
The other two men turned around to see what the horrible 'breaking and crunching' sound was. They spotted Hanna and Gail standing there and their homeboys lying motionless on the asphalt. Both of their right arms looked like they were severely damaged and bent at impossible angles.
The other two 'gang bangers' went for their guns.
Cam and Holly were in back of them in a second.
They did the same thing Hanna and Gail did. It was clear from the crushed shoulders, if these men lived; they would all need to become left handed.
There were now four passed out punks lying in the parking lot.
Allison and Vanna arrived. They'd witnessed the level of force used.
"It looks like we won." Allison said.
Allison held her Model 66 in her right hand. She looked over at Vanna.
"Cover your ears." Allison said.
Allison pointed her Model 66 at the driver's head of the car she'd cut off.
Vanna saw Allison was going to kill the driver. She didn't think it was necessary. It was over.
"What are you doing?" Vanna asked.
Vanna gently pushed Allison's hand down with her Model 66 in it.
Allison reluctantly complied. She felt she knew exactly what she was doing. She knew how things played out in the future. She felt the men's words were proof of what they were willing to do now. It would only get worse in the future.
"I'm saving some girls from being abused in the future. You heard them. They've obviously done it before." Allison said. "You know exactly what I mean."
Vanna did know what she meant. This wasn't the future, not yet anyway.
Holly could see Vanna didn't want to kill them in cold blood.
"There are two knives and two guns lying on the pavement." Holly said. "I don't think they planned to sell 'Girl Scout' cookies."
Gail decided to act.
"I'll snap their necks." Gail said.
Vanna hated Scavengers. It was such a minor thing to set things off.
"No." Vanna said. "We started this."
Cam thought of the abuse Vanna was forced to deal with.
"I'll end it then." Cam said.
Cam moved forward and delivered a carefully aimed kick. It was clear whatever was in front of her foot, took a hard hit. She moved to the second man and did the same thing. She took care of the other two men in the same way.
"I think they've been given a sufficient warning." Cam said. "I'm not sure what will still be usable, if anything."
Vanna wasn't used to seeing violence close up in this timeline. The men were alive. They were all injured. She was sure the men would have carried out some of the threats they'd indicated they were going to do. If they would have done all of them to some poor innocent female, it would have warranted their termination.
"Let's go." Vanna said.
Cam hurried forward to get into the driver's seat before Allison. She figured it was better to take over the wheel now to avoid any other altercations before they returned to the Resistance base. More than likely Allison would cause another incident before they arrived.
Allison and Vanna got in the back seat. Holly got in the front with Cam.
Cam started the SUV and drove out. They noticed all four men were lined up side by side on the pavement in front of their cars. Gail and Hanna were just getting in their SUV as they passed them.
Gail started the SUV and drove forward around the two gang cars. She was about to drive over the legs of the four men lying on the ground.
Hanna saw what she was about to do.
"Vanna already said it was enough." Hanna said. "I agree with her."
Gail knew if she was out with Jesse, the punishment would have been more severe for all of them. She also needed to respect the desires of 'Savannah Weaver', even if it wasn't Savannah herself.
It was clear the gang members got off lucky.
Seconds ago:
Derek and Kyle watched the drone footage.
"The Metal girls are about to act." Derek said.
The feed went blank.
Kyle looked over from his phone to Derek's phone.
"Hey!" Kyle said. "What happened?"
Bob was sure he knew the reason. There was going to be extreme violence of a personal nature. He didn't know to what extent Vanna and Allison would participate.
"CamNet has disabled the feed." Bob said.
They waited for any gunshots. There were none.
A few minutes later, Allison's SUV came out from the back. They could see Cam was now behind the wheel when it stopped next to them. Gail's SUV arrived about thirty seconds later.
"How did it go?" Kyle asked.
Cam thought it should be obvious.
"We won and they lost." Cam said.
Derek glanced over at Kyle. He asked what both of them wanted to know.
"Are they dead?" Derek asked.
Cam looked over at Gail.
Gail didn't think it was a big deal.
"They were alive when we left." Gail said.
She didn't know if any of them would terminate or not. She didn't think so.
They decided to head back to the base.
Cam led followed by Kyle and Gail brought up the rear.
CamNet suggested to the Metal girls they should pick up some 'food to go' on the way back. She would have everything ordered and paid for. Bob and Jim were also given the information. The three vehicles would be busy once they neared the base.
Vanna looked at Allison as she slowly put her Model 66 away. She was sure Allison would have killed at least one of them, if not all four. She really didn't know why.
The girls were done with the F-4 Phantom II.
The next closest aircraft were two Soviet era MiG fighters behind them.
"These were adversarial aircraft." Cameron said.
Camille thought the first aircraft was superior to the MiG-15 it replaced.
"The MiG-17 was very similar to the last models of the F-86. Some of which were equipped with an afterburner. The last F-86s assembled in Australia were a match for it." Camille said. "The MiG-17 was a much needed upgrade of the inferior MiG-15."
Ted didn't care for inferior aircraft. It disgusted him even more to know much of the technology was copied, or outright stolen from other countries. It was clear some nations were unable to develop their own equipment. It didn't say much about their ability. When they did use their equipment, it was destroyed very quickly.
"Communist junk sucks." Ted said to Joe. "Does anyone even remember the 'Soviet Union'?"
Ted and Joe both 'high fived' each other.
The girls all heard what was said.
Cameron moved to the aircraft next to it.
"This is a MiG-21." Cameron said. "It was more long lived than the MiG-17. There are numerous variations of this aircraft, as well as copies made in other countries. There are still flying examples of this as well in the air forces of several nations. Needless to say, in a conflict with more capable equipment, they are not going to fare very well."
Joe could think of a time proving example of what was just said. It happened on multiple occasions, when a series of nations bit off more than they could chew.
"There's a lot of shot down wrecks of MiGs in the Middle East." Joe said to Ted. "A 'Fishdead' was no match for a Phantom, one on one, in a dogfight."
Ted was aware of numerous reports of the aerial encounters. He thought it was incredibly shameful on the part of the aggressor pilots.
"I remember over Lebanon and Syria, once MiG pilots were 'locked up' by Israeli planes, they punched out even before they were hit." Ted said. "They knew the US made missiles, which the Commies never could copy exactly, would bring them down."
Joe was aware the same thing occurred even more recently.
"It happened during Gulf War II in a different way." Joe said. "Most of Iraq's fighter pilots flew to other countries and surrendered their planes. They didn't even wait to be 'locked up'."
Ted and Joe laughed and 'high fived' each other again in the background.
Young Allison felt something needed to be pointed out. She didn't doubt the enemy pilots were inferior, but it couldn't be applied to everyone with a blanket. There are always individuals who would stand out above others.
"A plane is only as good as the pilot." Young Allison said. "The best plane in the world, with a poor or unqualified pilot, will end up as a smoking hole in the ground."
Cameron thought of a glaring example of her statement. In this instance it was a very poor performing aircraft, with an outstanding and capable pilot.
"A case in point was the Brewster F2A Buffalo." Cameron said. "In the hands of Navy and Marine pilots, the Buffalo proved to be somewhat lacking. The Allies they were supplied to didn't fare any better. The export version, the B-239, which went to Finland in their fight against the Soviets, proved quite effective. In the first part of the conflict, thirty two Soviet aircraft were shot down for every B-239 lost. The Buffalo produced a number of Finnish aces. The top ace scored thirty six kills with a Buffalo. That's an impressive record with any aircraft of the time period for one pilot, especially with that aircraft."
Savannah was aware the top USA's ace only scored forty with a P-38. The next highest number was thirty eight, also with a P-38.
Joe and Ted moved the girls along. They didn't want to dwell on what they felt were 'lesser' aircraft.
They moved on to the next plane.
"This is variable-sweep wing, or 'swing wing', FB-111A, or later on, the F-111G Aardvark." Cameron said.
Young Jesse was familiar with the aircraft as well. Australia possessed a couple of variations for a number of years.
"I saw a video of one of these do a fuel dump near Sydney, and then hit the afterburners to ignite the fuel in the air." Young Jesse said. "There was a massive amount of burning fuel in the air for a few seconds."
Cameron was aware the F-111 got a bad rap in its initial stages of development. It wasn't the fault of the aircraft. It was the fault of the control system which they attempted to perfect. It cost more than a few planes along with their pilots.
"Needless to say the plane developed a lot of teething problems." Cameron said. "The biggest one was the ground hugging radar at supersonic speeds, fifty feet off of the ground. It was something which was finally rectified."
Camille knew all of the facts concerning the military in Australia.
"Australia was the last operator of the F-111." Camille said.
Savannah noted how the seating arrangement was. It reminded her of the A-37 they'd viewed earlier.
"I like the 'side by side' seating." Savannah said.
Cameron was aware the aircraft was very capable in several different areas. One of them was speed, the other one was in ordinance.
"Some versions were as fast as Mach 2.5." Cameron said. "Other versions could carry over thirty thousand pounds of bombs at supersonic speed."
Anna thought about pointing out the original mission of the TBX proposal. It was originally for the Navy. By the time the plane was designed, it was too heavy to safely take off from a carrier. The Air Force was 'forced' to take over the program. She decided to save the information for some other time, if it warranted mention.
Cameron moved on to the next two planes. They were the F-100 Super Sabre and then the F-101 Voodoo.
The girls in Jesse's room needed to wrap it up. The group who was out, would return soon.
Samantha and Riley made their way back to the nursery.
Sarah headed for her room. She checked out Samantha's rings one more time. She decided she was going to do it too. It was something she'd wanted to do for years. If she couldn't get pregnant again soon, she was going to do it.
Claire thought she should check on Summer. She'd examine Samantha's rings closely before she'd left as well. She knew she could look exactly the same.
Jesse wondered what everyone was up to. It was just Jan and Precious with her.
She was relieved when they returned. She was sure they went off to have sex somewhere. It was probably in her room. She thought Samantha better play her cards carefully. Riley was taboo. Well, at least for her she was.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Temporal Mission:
Past Timeline:
November 23 1963
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Young Allison went back to looking at the bleak landscape as the train went along. She could still feel the after effects of 'time lag'. She thought about taking a nap. It seemed like a bad idea. She didn't want to be awake in the middle of the night with nothing at all to look at.
She could hear the constant 'clickety clack' sound of the wheels on the rails. It also added a certain amount of vibration to the motion. She was aware in her time period most, of the rails weren't in such short sections. They were usually welded into quarter mile lengths. It gave a much smoother ride and required much less maintenance for the track. Not only was each rail spiked down to a wooden tie, there was also a connection where they were bolted together. There were electrical lines that ran through the track as well to complete the track circuit. It was all part of the automatic block system.
She'd been a little dismayed when she read how they took sections of the double track out of the Sierra crossing, and transferred the rail to the Sunset Route after 'Borg of Omaha' took over in 1996.
Young Allison looked over the brochures and menu a couple more times. She turned her attention out to the bleak landscape. It was the same monotonous view, mile after mile.
She could hear sirens. They seemed rather faint at first and then grew louder. She turned to ask Cameron what they were. Cameron wasn't there.
Where did Cameron go?
She got up and went to the door. She opened it and looked out into the narrow hall. No one else was spotted. She didn't see the room steward either. She wasn't sure if they were police sirens, or some type of air raid siren.
What if they were under attack?
Was it possible Skynet tracked them into the past?
Where was Cameron at?
She made her way down the length of the sleeping car. She decided to go back first. She reached the end of their sleeping car and looked at the side door arrangement. The door could be opened in its entirety, or the top section of the door could open like a 'Dutch Door'. She pushed the rectangle button. The door between the cars 'hissed'. After a second, it opened. It was much noisier between the cars. She could see the diaphragm moving with the sway of each car. She stepped over the connection and pushed the button on the door of the next car. The one behind her closed. The door in front of her 'hissed' and opened up. It was another sleeping car. There was no one present. She passed through the length of the car and repeated the process to enter the third sleeping car.
It wasn't a sleeping car. It was a lounge car. There was no one in it. She found it very strange. Everything was very much like the brochure she'd looked at earlier. She moved to the rear of the car. She could look out the rear door at the track behind them. She couldn't hear the sirens anymore. Now she wasn't sure if there ever were any sirens or not.
The lounge car didn't have an open platform or a rounded rear end. It had a 'blunt' rear end. It was so additional cars could be easily attached to the rear of it and people could still pass from one car to another. Sometimes there would be private cars attached to the rear of it. She was sure she'd read it in the brochure as well.
She was a little surprised when she pushed the button and the rear door 'hissed' and opened. It was very noisy. The 'clickety clack' of the wheels on the rails was very irritating.
She was a little surprised to see Cameron on a 'hand car'. She pumped it up and down to propel it along. She was able to match the speed of the train somehow. She knew it was because she was a Terminator.
Cameron motioned for her to step out and get onto the hand car. It was right up against the rear coupler. She didn't bring her purse with her. She didn't have her weapons. Wait, she had the snub nose revolver in her pocket.
She moved to the rear of the car and stepped onto the rear coupler so she could step onto the handcar. She took the step and placed her foot on the handcar. There was only one problem. The hand car wasn't there anymore. Neither was Cameron. There was nothing but the ties in the ballast below her.
Young Allison's eyes shot open. She sat up a little straighter in her seat. She was still in their private bedroom. Cameron sat across from her.
"I think I dozed off." Young Allison said.
She looked over where her purse was at, along with the firearms. She touched the pocket on her dress. There was nothing in it.
Cameron watched Young Allison's eyes slowly close earlier.
"You were asleep for seventeen minutes and twenty three seconds." Cameron said. "Did you dream about anything?"
Young Allison swallowed hard. She looked out the window for a moment.
"I think I dreamt I wanted to be someplace else other than here." Young Allison said.
She didn't think it was a good idea to tell Cameron about her dream.
Cameron wondered if they shouldn't have tried to take a flight. There were no metal detectors at most of the airports in 1963. It was only a few years later when planes started being hijacked to Cuba when they started to introduce them. She wondered why any imbecile would want to go there. It was a hard line communist state. All of the hijackers were promptly arrested and put into jail.
"We can get off at one of the stops." Cameron said. "We'll be in Del Rio in approximately twenty two minutes. The train is running on the advertised schedule. There's a ten minute station stop. It's possible they may leave early. We're currently making track speed right now. There are mile markers along the right of way. I've timed it over and over again."
Young Allison was sure wherever Del Rio was at, it was in the middle of nowhere.
"When's the next big city?." Young Allison asked. "It's bound to have more amenities and choices for other modes of transportation."
Cameron thought their best option would be El Paso. The only trouble was, they were supposed to arrive at 11:10 PM. There wouldn't be much open at that time. She figured it was OK too. She should be able to 'borrow' a car. She wasn't sure the drive in the dark was going to be any better than where they were at right now. Even in a car it would still be in the middle of nowhere.
"The next substantial city is El Paso." Cameron said. "It's a 'border town'."
Cameron was aware in their time period, the city was inundated and overrun with many illegal aliens. She was unsure why the federal government chose not to enforce the laws on the books. It was a substantial drain on the city's resources as well as the state's resources. The federal government did little to alleviate the problem it created.
She found it somewhat strange the federal government complained when the illegal aliens were bused to other cities who said they were 'sanctuary cities'. When the illegals arrived, for some reason, the 'sanctuary cities' didn't really want them after all. They saw what a financial burden it was, and the crime rate began to rise. It was because the illegals needed money and they couldn't get jobs, there was only one way to get money. It was to work illegally for extremely low wages or find items to 'appropriate' and sell for pennies on the dollar.
Young Allison knew 'border towns' were trouble in her time period.
"What kind of trouble will we run into if we get off there?" Young Allison asked.
Cameron was aware there was a 'drug trade'. It was nothing like it was in more modern times.
"It shouldn't be much worse than the riffraff we've already encountered." Cameron said. "It won't be a problem for me. There's nothing for you to worry about."
Young Allison glanced over at her purse. It was where the two firearms she chose to keep were at.
"There won't be for me, but there might be for someone else." Young Allison said.
Cameron was aware Young Allison killed everyone she'd shot. She made sure they were dead.
"We need to moderate our responses." Cameron said. "I want you to remain on the train when we reach Del Rio. I'm going to get off temporarily for a few minutes. I can see what I can contact ahead of time."
Young Allison was a little worried.
"What happens if you miss the train?" Young Allison asked.
Cameron tilted her head slightly.
"I could always take a hand car and catch up to the train." Cameron said.
Young Allison felt mouth go dry. It sounded a little too similar to her dream. She hoped it wasn't foreshadowing.
"If it happens, I can go to the last car and open the door for you when you catch up." Young Allison said. "I saw what it looks like in the brochure."
Cameron wasn't sure how long it would take.
"I'm not certain what the timeline would be." Cameron said. "Once I caught up to the rear of the train, I would simply step onto the coupler and force the door open. If I couldn't force it open, I would climb up on top of it."
Somehow Young Allison pictured it as a worse scenario than her dream was.
"What do you mean climb up on top of it?" Young Allison asked.
Cameron tilted her head slightly.
"I would climb up on top of the train and walk to where our room is." Cameron said. "I would lean down and tap on the glass. You could go open the 'Dutch Door' for me and I would come in through it."
Young Allison frowned slightly.
"I was afraid it was what you meant." Young Allison said.
Cameron could feel the train start to slow.
"We must almost be there." Cameron said. "I'll be back."
Young Allison noticed Cameron left her purse behind.
"Are you going to take a weapon with you?" Young Allison asked.
Cameron smiled.
"I am a weapon." Cameron said.
Cameron went out the door and closed it behind her.
Young Allison looked back out the window. There was a scattering of buildings around them now. She also saw there was another track next to them. So far they'd passed three freight trains. Two of them were coming in the opposite direction they were going. One of them was going in the direction they were. They all appeared to be stopped as they passed them. Most of the track was single track with passing sidings. All the other trains needed to go into the 'hole' when the Sunset Limited came through. It was the premier train on the line.
Cameron went out into the hall. She saw the room steward. He told her which car the conductor would open to detrain, and board, any passengers. She made her way to the car. She could hear the 'Dutch Door' was open. She paused at the opening. The conductor had his head out the window. He backed up and opened the lower half of the door. He noticed her there.
"I'd appreciate it if you would please stay where you're at until the train stops." The conductor said. "I'd hate for anyone to fall out."
Cameron wondered what it would be like.
"Has it ever happened to you before?" Cameron asked.
The conductor glanced back from the open doorway.
"I've seen everything happened you can think of." The conductor said. "There's been everything from train robberies to murder. Well, the murders weren't on this train. They were on a few of the locals. Hobos get killed all the time on freight trains. I worked on those for a number of years. This is a much better assignment. I've only got a few more years before I can wrap it up and retire. I already have thirty eight years of service in."
Cameron thought it was a long time. She was more concerned about the train robbery.
"What was the train robbery?" Cameron asked. "Where was it at?"
The train was almost stopped.
The conductor shook his head in disgust.
"It was in Arizona, where the tracks were right up against the southern border." The conductor said. "My Pappy told me about trouble before. They sent Black Jack Pershing down across the border to get things in order. I think it needs to happen again."
Cameron was aware it was still a common occurrence. Container trains were routinely looted when they neared the boundary with the southern border. Debris will be placed on the tracks to cause one of the airlines to be ripped loose. As soon as one of them was, the train went into 'emergency braking' and stopped. There would be trucks waiting with dozens of men to start emptying out the container cars. The head and crew would just call it in. There was nothing they could do. They usually weren't robbed or attacked as long as they stayed in the locomotive. It was almost a standard operating procedure. It was part of the job now.
"Del Rio." The conductor said.
He went down the steps and put the step stool at the bottom.
Cameron stepped down from the passenger car.
"Don't leave without me." Cameron said.
The conductor was about to tell her they needed to stick to the schedule. He looked at the beauty of her face and smiled.
"I'll hold the train for you." The conductor said. "'The Hogger' can make up the time." The conductor said.
Cameron flashed her beautiful smile at the conductor.
"I'll be back." Cameron said.
Especially You
It's easy to get carried away
And for some things to overdo
It could all be because
They were long overdue
Events can spiral out of control
Like a bent corkscrew
It can be pause for thought
It may even be a preview
Things are easy to mistake
When one receives a miscue
Soon all that will be left
May just be the residue
It does little good
To go back and review
Everyone already did the things
That they wanted to do
So take a good look
Think about when and who
It applies to many things
Especially you
Nobody