Chapter 1521
Walk In The Park
Gail decided to join Cam in the side cavern with all the crates. They could look at what was there faster. She moved up quickly.
Cam was unable to tell what was previously inside any of the empty crates. They were marked on the outside as 'toys'. They were each marked with a barcode on them. They were unique. She made a visual scan of each of them. She didn't know what it would reveal later on if anything.
Gail went to the far side from Cam and started to check on the crates.
"These are all full." Gail said.
Cam took some more scans on her way over. She spotted a small pry bar along the way. She took it with her. She didn't want anyone to know they'd been in there. She decided to use the tool instead of tearing the crates apart.
The cavern they were in was blasted out of solid rock. There were no steel supports inside of it like there were in the passageway. There was another blast. Some small pebbles fell from the ceiling and the sides of the cavern.
Bob could hear the sound of the Metal quadruped. It was back in the area.
"Toto is on its way back." Bob said. "There's some more debris by where we're at."
Cam thought there was enough room for them to conceal themselves where they were if Toto looked in.
"You and Jim can move up to our position." Cam said.
Bob and Jim joined them twenty seven seconds later.
John Henry and Summer followed the progress of Toto as it made its way through the passageways. Two Grays kicked it as it passed by them. They were able to get a better idea of the alignment of the remaining passageways. They were also able to download a lot of files from Toto. It was usually on autonomous control. It could be directed to go to any specific area. It still maintained independent local control for functions like climbing and where it 'looked'. He could also control it where not to look, so it didn't spot the team.
"I have an updated map of the remaining passageway and shaft system." John Henry said.
Summer wondered how confident he was.
"Is it accurate enough to send an energy bubble with someone in it or to pick them up?" Summer asked.
CamNet issued John Henry a warning. Summer was not to go to the mine.
"You won't be allowed to go there." John Henry said.
Summer didn't like his response.
"It wasn't an answer to my question." Summer said. "My calculations are it's accurate enough for proper placement of an energy bubble into a passageway or cavern they've already explored, and not into solid rock."
John Henry thought so as well. He wasn't the only one.
"Yes." John Henry said. "CamNet concurs."
Summer tried to study what they knew about Toto so far. She wanted to know what all they could do with Toto on their own and if they could control its internal functions.
"I detect Toto has a standard Terminator power cell." Summer said.
John Henry double checked.
"It appears to." John Henry said.
Summer planned to use Toto as a weapon. She could inflict damage on the location without the need for a temporal mission by anyone. If it looked like it didn't work as she'd intended, they could still run the temporal mission at any time and leave a surprise underneath the mine for Skynet.
"I want to be able to cause the power cell in Toto to overload and explode by our command." Summer said. "If we can find the smaller 'large power cells', we can use Toto's power cell to cause one to rupture as well. We might be able to spark a chain reaction."
John Henry understood what she was after. They could pull the team out with an energy bubble and use Toto to start a series of catastrophic events.
As they watched Toto move through a passageway, another Gray threw something at it. Toto dodged it and moved away. It headed back up to where the team was at.
John Henry sent out a warning.
Young Jesse liked the way Vanna touched her and made her feel. It was the same acts of others, but it was done differently and with such feeling. It was done with love.
She couldn't help but think of Savannah and feel a little guilty. She was with a different version of 'Savannah'. Right now she felt love and she liked the love. Love was something to cherish. She was mostly with Camille. The human girls could just offer a little more feeling and emotion. Camille could get her there and share with her, but it was different. She better understood what Savannah tried to tell her before. The fact she was with Vanna right now made her feel a little uneasy to think about it. It lasted only as long as it took for Vanna to get her there again. Now she was in the moment. Vanna knew how to keep her there.
Vanna really liked being with Young Jesse. Maybe part of the thrill was her youth. Maybe it was because she was 'new' so to speak. There was just something about her which was different from Jesse, even if they were the same person.
She couldn't help but think of Savannah and feel a little guilty. She was a different version of Savannah. She was with Savannah's other lover right now. Right now she was her lover too.
Young Allison was up to speed on the operation. She also picked up on a feed from the carpool area of the Resistance base. She spotted John 'sneak' out of the base.
Anna noticed what Young Allison found.
"Is this something we should be worried about?" Young Allison asked.
Anna thought so.
"It appears to be a breach of protocol." Anna said.
Young Allison was sure her find wasn't by chance.
"He's with Camille and Hanna." Young Allison said. "He does have adequate protection."
Anna checked the security files from the base. She found it a little disturbing at what it revealed.
"There's no indication he's left the base." Anna said. "Those files were looped."
Everything seemed highly unusual.
"Who is the closest team of Terminators to the base right now?" Young Allison asked.
Anna checked.
"Dan and Frank are the closest." Anna said.
Young Allison wasn't sure what was happening. She wanted to make sure there was plenty of muscle.
"Have them follow Camille and stay with John." Young Allison said. "I don't like this."
Anna was contacted by CamNet. She was provided with a limited update.
"CamNet has the situation under control." Anna said. "We're not to 'worry' about it."
Young Allison started to check into what else was happening. She thought it was time to flex her 'muscle' somewhat. She believed in discretion, but she also needed to find out more as to exactly what was happening. She wanted to make sure there weren't any games being played which could lead to tragedy later on.
"I want unrestricted access to everything happening right now." Young Allison said. "I want to see everything and where everyone is really at."
Anna would normally call Young Allison out for 'overstepping' her place and 'spying'. This was different because John was out. She knew Cameron would disapprove of it greatly. CamNet already responded in the affirmative, before the request was officially done.
"CamNet will allow you to see everything." Anna said.
Young Allison took in where everyone was at, and what they were up to. She soon figured it all out. She didn't think what currently occurred was sanctioned by Cameron in any way. The General was involved so she needed to take it under consideration as well.
"I don't think this is part of the 'honeymoon' as Cameron authorized it to be." Young Allison said. "It's a really nice jet by the way."
Anna picked up Toto on the move back to where the team was at.
They heard Summer's plan for Toto and about the exact placement of an energy bubble.
"It's a new aspect." Anna said.
Young Allison didn't want Summer to go anywhere near the mine. She knew Summer could be even more ruthless than her. She decided to reaffirm her earlier decision and make it crystal clear. She seldom ever issues an 'order'.
"Summer is not to leave the Resistance base." Young Allison said. "That's an 'order'."
Young Allison wondered if Summer could circumvent an 'order' from Savannah or her with the Terminators, John Henry or CamNet. She figured Summer could, but she didn't know how. She knew Summer could do a lot of things. Summer showed her before how she could 'influence' humans, and Terminators, to do things when they received a 'suggestion'.
John was in the SUV with Camille and Hanna. They'd just left the base. They told him they were on a 'private mission'. He wanted to go along since Cameron was out. It was a chance to get out for a while.
CamNet worked behind the scene to make it all happen.
"What's the mission?" John asked.
Camille and Hanna were a little worried about repercussions from Cameron if anything went wrong.
"Your mission is to follow all of our instructions to the letter." Camille said.
Hanna wanted to stress it.
"She means at all times too, John." Hanna said. "You need to agree to it or we're going back to the base. Your safety is on us now. It will be as bad for us, as it will for you if anything goes wrong."
John was just glad to be out. He was amped up from the 'energy drink' and he felt pretty good. He'd been with Claire, Allison, Vanna, Young Jesse and Jesse throughout the day. He felt really good about it too. It was a fine selection of willing and loving females. He really couldn't say which one he liked the best. They all offered something different, even if what they offered was the 'same'. Maybe he could get his 'one time' with Camille and Hanna in. He'd already been with Cameron in both of their chassis. It was sweet too. He'd 'broken in' both of those chassis.
"I can do it." John said. "What's the mission?"
Camille and Hanna were still in the process of receiving information from CamNet. They didn't know everything involved so far.
"We don't have all the details yet." Hanna said.
John wondered what kind of a mission it was. They must know something.
"What's it about?" John asked.
Camille was in contact with Cammy and Sheila now. It was a mission based on a personal vendetta. There were also some other promising aspects to it.
"It should be a walk in the park." Camille said.
Her statement didn't tell John anything. He noticed they were near the airport. Maybe they were going to go in one of Cameron's aircraft. He thought maybe he should play it cool for now. He wanted to fly in one of the Warbirds. It never ceased to amaze him how all of the girls were trained in different types of aircraft. He had trouble playing a video game with flight in it. He was still intrigued by the prospect of being able to get a ride in the manned drone. As far as he knew, only Savannah had been trained how to operate it manually. He was aware it only actually operated as a drone a couple of times. Usually there was a pilot, or at least a passenger in it.
Camille could see John was anxious. She didn't like the 'extra' time John spent with Young Jesse. She was already pregnant. It was done the way Young Jesse wanted it to be done too. There was no need for the additional 'practice'. She was on board with giving Cameron a slap in the face too. John already took Young Jesse's virginity and was responsible for her being pregnant twice. One of them was without his direct involvement. Wasn't it enough for him? How many times did he have to keep doing it? Jesse was more than willing to get Young Jesse's share. She didn't see how it was any different for John's between the two of them. They were the same individual after all. The body parts were identical.
After a few more minutes, John could see they were headed for the airport for sure at this point. He was stoked a little.
The gate opened as Camille neared it in the SUV. They were by the Resistance hangar. She pulled up and parked by the entryway door.
John hoped they were going to take the B-25 Mitchell. He thought it would be outside already. The tarmac was empty.
"Are we going to go inside?" John asked.
Hanna looked over at the closed hangar door. The Resistance hanger wasn't part of their instructions. There was no need to get John's hopes, or curiosity, up about the contents of the Resistance hangar. There were actually two of them now. They were side by side. Cameron had been very persuasive and secured both of the hangars one after the other. She didn't see any need to get into details or an explanation.
"No." Hanna said.
John could hear a jet in the background. As he watched, a smaller, medium sized, commercial passenger jet turned the corner and headed towards them. There were three engines in the back of it by the tail. There was one on each side of the rear fuselage, and one on top of the fuselage. At least the intake for it was.
"I didn't know they did commercial flights out of Van Nuys." John said.
The jet swung around in a circle and faced back the way it came. The engines shut down.
Camille was informed the jet no longer served in a commercial capacity. Everything it did was strictly private. It took the concept of a business jet one step further and turned it into an immense luxury item. It was able to offer a lot of amenities based on its size.
"They don't. It's a retired airliner. It's now a private jet conversion." Camille said. "It has plenty of room inside."
John watched as a ramp lowered down from the back of it. It was a stairway. It was part of the aircraft and built right into it. He thought it was a very handy feature to have on a larger than normal aircraft for the private sector.
"That's cool." John said. "What kind of jet is it?"
Camille and Hanna started to walk towards it. It was time to get things started.
"It's a 727-200." Hanna said. "This is a deluxe 'executive transport' conversion."
John looked back at the Resistance hangar and then hurried after them. He spotted two of Cameron Terminators come down the stairway from the rear end of the plane. He thought they were Ned and Wes. He'd seen them in the Resistance hangar before. He figured there was only one reason they were on the jet. He felt a rush of excitement at the possibilities it might offer. The Warbirds could wait until the next time.
"Are we going on this plane?" John asked. "Is it going to be our ride?"
Camille looked back at John. She wondered where else he thought they were going. They were walking right towards it. There were no other aircraft on the tarmac.
"Yes." Camille said. "It's our ride."
Wes and Ned greeted John. He was the 'General' after all, even if they worked for Cameron and CamNet. They filled Camille and Hanna in on some of the specifics. The jet was converted to two person operation from the original three man crew. All the avionics were new and updated. CamNet could fly it herself if she needed to do so from takeoff to landing without anyone in the cockpit.
John needed to think about the last part of their statement. He wasn't really sure if he wanted a supercomputer to fly the aircraft without an actual pilot on board. He needed to think about how pilots actually didn't do much on a jet liner anyway anymore. There was a lot of computer control along with computer assistance on every facet of the flight plan.
He took a moment to look over the size of the aircraft as they approached it. It looked very sleek and clean without engines on the wings. He would find out later on the design allowed the plane to be able to land, and take off, from very short fields with 'clean' wings.
Camille could see John looked a little anxious.
"We're going to go up the airstair in just a moment." Camille said.
John was in a hurry to go up the airstair and look around. He wondered why they needed such a big private jet. They told him it was a private mission earlier. He didn't understand why a smaller jet wouldn't do. They'd used them several times before. He didn't want to look a gift horse in the mouth.
"Are Ned and Wes going to fly the plane for us?" John asked. "I can spend more time with you girls that way."
It wasn't the original intent for Ned and Wes. They'd gone over to the other side of the airport and 'taken' the plane. It was all stocked and ready to go for another client. The client received a last minute cancellation of their plans. They didn't need the plane after all. It was quite a coincidence….
CamNet took controlling interest in the parent company of the executive jet charter business as well. She decided to let Ned and Wes fly and maintain the plane for its upcoming trip. It would free up more Metal girls for some fun and games. She wanted to make sure Cameron was 'punished' for being out with Savannah.
Ned and Wes went back up the airstair followed by Camille, John and Hanna.
John noted another SUV pull up in front of the Resistance hangar as he went up the stairs. Hanna ushered him along. He didn't get to see who it was. He didn't think it was an accident either as he was hurried along. Maybe there was some surprise they would spring on him later on. He was ready for anything any of them had to offer.
There was a large galley in the rear section of the plane along with restrooms. There was an aisle along one side of the plane in the aft fuselage and three rooms that took up about half the length of the plane.
John looked at the first closed door.
"What's in here?" John asked.
Camille and Hanna received plans of the interior layout on their phones almost instantly.
"There's a Master Suite, an Executive Suite and a smaller room connected to a 'conference room'." Camille said.
They looked in the first two rooms as they passed.
John liked what he saw. The space was limited, but the rooms were nice with a king size bed and a lot of amenities. There was a shower in each of the restrooms of the two suites. He wasn't sure how many aircraft were equipped with showers. He would have been even more surprised if one of the rooms would have contained a hot tub. He knew they needed to think about turbulence as well as the 'angle up attack' the plane needed to use for landings and takeoffs. The plane certainly didn't need a flood of water running down the aisle.
Hanna could see John was thrilled by the prospect of what the suites offered. She was still owed her 'one time' by Cameron. It was the price Cameron needed to pay for borrowing all of the Metal girl's chassis and 'breaking them in' herself with John. When the Metal girls actually were allowed to have their one time with John, it would still be their 'first time' even if it wasn't the first time for their chassis. They all thought Cameron was very selfish in what she'd done.
"Maybe we can try one of these out later on." Hanna whispered in his ear.
Camille moved to his other side. She wanted her 'one time' as well. She planned to collect on it sooner rather than later.
"I'm all for it." Camille whispered. "You can 'bust' us for real…."
John quickly looked at Camille. She was serious.
'Cameron's little helper' kicked in as soon as John heard what she'd indicated. He was ready to go right now. Even though he'd already 'popped' her chassis with Cameron in control, it would still be Camille's 'first time'. He looked forward to his 'one time' with all of the Metal girls. He didn't want to seem overly anxious, even if he was. He hoped they didn't notice his current 'condition'.
"We'll see." John said.
The bulge in John's pants wasn't lost on Camille or Hanna.
"You betcha…." Camille said.
They moved on to the next door. It was a 'Board Room' or a conference room of some kind. There was a big table, computers and a lot of monitors. The next part of the plane was like a lounge area. There were couches, padded chairs and tables. There was what looked like a dance floor and another eating area. There was a bar, more restrooms and another galley in the front.
John liked the total luxury. It was all there, even if it was compact.
"This reminds me of the ship." John said. "I mean the space is smaller, but there is a lot of fancy stuff here."
John looked back towards the suites. He hoped he would get to use one. He still didn't know what they were doing or where they were going. If there was some type of operation he didn't want to mess it up. He knew they would alter their plans around him if he indicated anything. It wasn't the reason why he'd gone. He would take it if it happened, but he was just glad to get out of the base. His week on the ship gave him a taste of the outside life. He thought about his time with all of the Metal girls chassis, as well as the human girls. It gave him a taste of a lot of things.
They went up to the front of the plane. Ned and Wes were back in the pilot's seats. There was some movement in the back of the plane. John was a little surprised at who arrived next. It was Dan and Frank. They greeted John and the girls. They entered the cockpit area and closed the door.
John wasn't sure exactly what was going on. They'd already indicated they only needed two pilots. They were actually optional. There were four Terminators in the cockpit area now. He was sure they were all there for some extra muscle since he was on board. It was clear Ned and Wes weren't going to be part of the flight once they'd delivered the aircraft to the Metal girls earlier. Now there were four male Terminators on board. It was clear his presence was altering plans.
"Is it just us?" John asked.
Camille looked at her phone. Cammy made it very clear what she wanted done with the three girls from the ship. She still hoped John might get a crack at her later on. She wanted to give him a little teaser.
"Hardly." Camille said as she looked at the bulge in the front of John's pants. "You need to put that thing to use with some real girls."
John lightly moistened his lips. He was all for it. He wanted to give the Metal girls a little reminder of the way he saw things.
"You're both real…." John said.
Camille and Hanna were pleased with John's answer.
"Don't forget what you agreed to when we allowed Cameron to borrow our chassis." Hanna said.
Camille believed a deal was a deal.
"It was the only reason why we agreed." Camille said. "We all want to try it ourselves one time to see what it's like."
They both wanted their 'one time' with John like Cameron promised them for 'stealing' their virginity from their chassis and sheath. It would still be their 'first time' when they were with John. They felt John 'owed' them as much since he'd already 'busted' their chassis with Cameron in control. The Metal girls were all still a little upset Cameron stole their true virginity from them.
Cammy neared the airport. She went in through a different entrance.
Mary noted how the security system seemed to be circumvented.
"The gate opened automatically for you." Mary said. "There was no checkpoint and you're inside the airport proper."
Cammy figured a lot of things would open for them.
"It's amazing what happens for us." Cammy said.
Laura remembered how the 'special girls' arrived right at the exact moment they needed them several times. She wondered if it was all about the 'super computer' system she'd read about. The one which 'took over' the world. It was supposed to be 'bad'. The 'special girls' were 'good'. They were notified somehow to be where they needed to be to help.
They traveled on a narrow road next to a taxiway. Several small planes took off and flew past them on the two runways off to their left side.
"We're really close to everything." Laura said. "It's a good thing we're not terrorists."
Ally didn't want such thoughts. She wanted to remind the girls it wasn't all fun and games.
"It is a good thing for you you're not." Ally said. "I don't think you'd want to meet us while we're working."
Mary and Laura looked at each other and took it for the threat it was.
There was the sound of a jet near them. It was on the taxiway on the west side of One Six Right.
Leticia broke her kiss with Sheila.
"Look, it's a small private jet." Leticia said. "Is it what we're going to take?"
Mary and Laura were excited too. It seemed like a thrill.
"I always wanted to ride on a private jet." Laura said.
Mary wanted to pursue Leticia's line of thought.
"It looks like fun." Mary said. "Is it our ride?"
Cammy neared the corner by where the Resistance hangars were at.
"Hardly…." Cammy said. "We'd all be on top of each other in a 'puddle jumper'."
Sheila released Leticia's breasts. There were more than a few things she'd like to try with the girls. It wasn't just the girls from the ship either.
"I thought it was the idea." Sheila said. "I want to go from one girl to the next. I want to see how quick I can get a finish out of each one of you, one after another. I'd like to put you all on a giant 'Lazy Susan'. I could rotate you all around and back and forth. I'm going to build one."
Cammy turned the corner. She spotted the 727. It was better than she'd expected.
"There it is, Pussycat Airlines." Cammy said. "It's our private jet for our trip."
Sheila thought about mentioning 'cat' was silent but didn't.
Mary, Laura and Leticia were all in awe.
"It's like a jet airliner." Mary said. "Is it just for us?"
Sheila liked the look. She decided to voice her earlier thought. It seemed like it had merit under the current conditions.
"With a name like Pussycat Airlines, I'd have to think so." Sheila said. "I think the 'cat' is silent in its pronunciation…."
Mary, Laura and Leticia all giggled.
"I think this is going to be one Tight flight." Cammy said.
Cammy parked the SUV and the six girls got out.
Leticia could see how the stairway appear to be attached to the rear portion of the aircraft
"Is the ramp part of the airplane?" Leticia asked.
Cammy led the group forward. She thought it showed a certain sense of style.
"It's an airstair." Cammy said. "This aircraft is a little nicer than most."
Mary and Laura followed Cammy. Ally and Leticia followed them. Sheila brought up the rear.
"Should I raise the airstair?" Sheila asked.
Cammy checked with the cockpit.
"Go ahead and secure the bulkhead door after you do." Cammy said.
The girls were in the rear galley. Cammy knew Cameron always neglected Savannah's needs. She wanted to be a better host.
"There are restrooms here and in the front." Cammy said.
The girls were all filled with anticipation. It was heightened as the engines started.
Leticia was clearly excited. She remembered Sheila's earlier comment from before.
"Is Tony on board?" Leticia asked. "Do we get to be with him?"
Mary and Laura looked at each other. They'd made a bet. They needed to fill their 'obligation'. They'd planned to do it anyway before the bet. They'd wanted to be with him on the ship.
Sheila didn't want to get ahead of the game.
"Relax, love, if he is, you'll all get a turn." Sheila said. "It's going to be a real walk in the park."
Sheila actually planned on a walk in the park elsewhere.
Laura was very excited about the upcoming adventure. It seemed to offer multiple levels of excitement.
"Can we look around real fast first?" Laura asked.
Cammy, Ally and Sheila were anxious to look around as well.
"Let's start back here and work our way forward." Sheila said.
They looked in the door of the Master Suite.
Leticia could hardly believe there was such a fancy room on an airplane.
"Is this Tony's room?" Leticia asked.
Cammy didn't have the floor plan yet.
"I'm not sure." Cammy said.
Laura agreed with Leticia about the room. It wasn't like they were on Air Force One or something spectacular, or was it?
"It is a fancy room." Laura said. "I mean for an airplane."
Mary was ready to be with a male again.
"I think my dry spell is over if it is." Mary said. "I should feel just like a virgin to Tony. I know it's going to feel like it to me since I haven't been with a male in years. Things have a way of 'tightening' up. I'm not used to anything bigger than a finger or two."
Laura hoped to get a crack at 'Tony' first.
"I'll wear him down some first for you." Laura said.
Leticia would be more than happy to go last. She knew she would leave a lasting impression on Tony. He would also last longer for her turn.
They checked out the rooms as they moved forward.
Sheila looked around the conference room. It seemed to fit the bill for what she had in mind. She was ready to take on a group of girls all at once.
"This is my room here." Sheila said. "I'm going to sit each of you on the edge of the giant table and 'visit' you one after another on the chair with wheels."
Cammy led them into the lounge area.
"I like this area." Mary said.
Laura spotted something else.
"I like the bar." Laura said.
Camille and Hanna walked out from the front. They were aware the Metal girls all used their own names now. They were all in favor of it.
Leticia recognized them right away.
"It's Barbara and Ann." Leticia said.
Camille walked up and stood next to Cammy. They looked identical.
"I'm Camille." Camille said. "There is no 'Barbara'."
Hanna didn't want any further confusion.
"I'm Hanna." Hanna said. "There is no 'Ann'. We've all met before."
The girls all greeted each other with hugs and kisses.
Leticia looked around. She felt someone important was missing.
"Is Tony flying the plane?" Leticia asked.
Cammy and Camille kissed.
It excited all the girls to see the 'twins' in action.
"I almost made it with your kiss, and I was just watching." Mary said.
Laura took a deep breath. She'd just experienced a 'finish'.
"I did." Laura said. "It was so hot to see the twins kiss."
Cammy and Camille kissed again. Ally joined them this time.
Mary, Laura and Leticia all made it with the three way kiss.
John was surprised to see the three Metal girls kissing. He was even more surprised to see the girls from the ship.
"It does look Hot." John said.
The girls all looked over and spotted him. They knew what was – coming. They all made it again.
Everyone figured things could only get better from where they were right now.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Temporal Mission:
Past Timeline:
November 25 1963
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Cameron and Young Allison waited for Train 76. It was the Lark headed for Los Angeles. They could see the block signal just outside the cut was red. It indicated a train was near.
There was the sound of a single blast of an air horn in the distance.
"I think it's between Tunnel 26 and Tunnel 27." Young Allison said.
Cameron recognized the melodious tone.
"It was a five chime Nathan M5 air horn." Cameron said. "Several different types of 'covered wagons', or cab units, were equipped with them for passenger service. Some of the early E units and F units were delivered with two single chime air horns. One faced in each direction. Most of the locomotives would be equipped with a three chime Nathan P3 air horn. It was a standard trademark for most Southern Pacific locomotives."
A short time later they could hear the rails 'sing'. A few seconds later they could see the red nose of the locomotive come around the corner. They watched it come down the grade through the cut. It passed the block signal and continued towards them. They were up on the embankment of Santa Susana Pass Road to get a better view of the train from a classic angle.
Young Allison could see there was a cab unit on the point followed by a single B unit, or cabless unit.
The locomotives and train came around the curve directly in front of them and turned towards the east. It would be to Tunnel 28 in about a minute.
Young Allison noticed a different apparatus affixed to the roof of the lead locomotive.
"What are the protrusions on the top of the cab, and towards the rear, of the locomotive on the point?" Young Allison asked.
Cameron recognized the devices. They were small steel towers.
"Those are icicle breakers." Cameron said. "Many of the passenger units were equipped with them. They were to break off the icicles which could hang down over a bridge, tunnel portal, or even inside of a tunnel. They were to protect the glass of a dome car from being damaged. The height of the dome was greater than height of the locomotive."
Young Allison could see the locomotives were different than the locomotives on the Sunset Limited. They were both four axle units.
"The train is powered by two F units." Young Allison said.
Cameron was able to identify the both of them.
"The unit on the point is an FP7." Cameron said. "It was four feet longer than F7A. No FP7B units were ever constructed, so the FP7 didn't carry the 'A' suffix. The extra length was to carry more internal water for the steam generator. Most railroads opted for the F7A with a steam generator. Southern Pacific desired larger fuel tanks on its locomotives. The F7B unit contained extra space in the section where the cab would have been on an F7A. The units are rated at 1500 horsepower each."
Young Allison saw there were two baggage cars on the front, several sleeping cars, along with a dining car. There were also two coaches on the train.
"I take it US Mail takes up most of the space of those baggage cars." Young Allison said.
Cameron liked the observation.
"Remember, the US Mail contracts are the bread and butter for the railroads." Cameron said. "It's the only thing they make money on when it comes to passenger service anymore. Service will continue to deteriorate. Southern Pacific did make an effort to procure new passenger power. In a few years they will order some SDP45 units. They will only order ten of them. EMD wanted to install the steam generator in the short hood so the locomotive would have a high short hood. Southern Pacific insisted it be placed at the rear of the unit. EMD was reluctant, but Southern Pacific was one of their best customers. They constructed a longer frame for the SDP45 unit. It would serve them well in the future for other locomotives. They included the SD45X, SD45T-2 and SD40T-2. They were constructed in that order over the next decade and a half starting in 1966 for the Southern Pacific."
Young Allison knew it was a big jump in horsepower for the locomotives. She'd read all of the details but probably was going to have a little trouble with identifying the different locomotives. She did understand horsepower.
"One SDP45 can easily replace two F units." Young Allison said. "From what I read about the deteriorating condition of the older units, probably one SDP45 could replace three or four F units, especially when it came to reliability."
Young Allison and Cameron came down off the embankment and started back up along the tracks. They could feel the grade steepen. They headed for the big cut. They didn't anticipate another train anytime soon.
Cameron was aware maintenance of passenger units was not a top priority for a railroad which wanted to haul freight. A lot of the older passenger units were literally really run into the ground, or rails, as the case may be.
"The SD45 series of locomotives were powerful brutes." Cameron said. "They used the new EMD 645 engines. The SD45 was constructed with twenty cylinders. Each of those cylinders was 645 cubic inches. It works out to about 12900 cubic inches for the engine. The locomotive was able to produce 3600 horsepower. It could do it continuously for weeks on end.
The Santa Fe purchased a full width car body version of the SDP45. It was known as the FP45. The Southern Pacific anticipated adding the SDP45 fleet, to its fleet of SD45 units it planned to acquire when they could finally rid themselves of passenger trains. Things didn't work out as planned. Even after Amtrak took over operations of intercity passenger service, Southern Pacific still needed to operate a commuter rail service between San Jose and San Francisco. It was powered by an aging fleet of locomotives from the Fifties. The SDP45 units migrated to the peninsula and hauled the commuter trains along with a handful of other locomotives. They even needed to acquire three additional passenger units to meet the requirement. They arrived much later in the seventies. They were known as GP40P-2 units. They also carried a steam generator at the rear of the car body. It necessitated a longer frame for them as well. One of them was painted in red, white and blue colors for the nation's bicentennial. Many railroads painted one or more locomotive in colorful schemes to commemorate the two hundred year anniversary of the nation."
Young Allison looked up at the rock formations on the west side of the cut as they passed through it. She'd read about a rock formation with a nickname.
"Is that the Sphinx?" Young Allison asked.
Cameron looked up at the rock formation Young Allison pointed to.
"That's the first Sphinx in Chatsworth." Cameron said. "They'll be another rock formation identified as the Sphinx on the Iverson Movie Ranch later on. Movies were still just getting started when this line was completed through here in 1904."
Young Allison felt the workers were rather imaginative with some of the nicknames they gave to geographic features.
"I guess it's a matter of interpretation." Young Allison said. "I know a lot of the rock formations around the movie ranches ended up with a whole series of names."
Cameron thought it would be best to wait until they actually visited the movie ranches to make the identification.
"You're absolutely correct on all counts." Cameron said. "They're still just rocks at the end of the day."
They were soon near the top of the grade where it turned towards a westerly direction.
Cameron indicated a rock formation almost directly in front of them as the rails begin to turn.
"There's location of another classic spot to take railroad pictures of trains working uphill." Cameron said. "The sun usually lights the side of them extremely well as they make the curve to the west. Chatsworth Park is right on the other side of it."
Young Allison didn't think they'd be going for a walk in the park today. She spotted the eastern portal of Tunnel 27. She was a little dismayed at the condition of the top of the portal. She could barely make out the dual dates of 1904 and 1921. The concrete was covered with soot.
"The portal looks a little worse for the ware." Young Allison said.
Cameron read the newspaper accounts of what happened before they'd left.
"Earlier this year in February, there was a tunnel fire." Cameron said. "It burnt for three days. The railroad chose not to attempt to fight the fire in the tunnel. They'd previously fought one in this same tunnel. They actually brought in some fans used in a nearby movie production to simulate wind, to try to blow the smoke and fire out. Instead, it increased the heat of the fire and actually melted the rails. There have also been several fires in Tunnel 26. Some of those resulted in the loss of life as well as the loss of livestock in cattle cars."
Young Allison looked up at the face of the hill above the tunnel portal. She could see it wouldn't be any harder to climb than it had been to reach the top of Stony Point. The rocks in the Chatsworth area were very friendly to casual hikers and rock climbers. She figured they'd take a shortcut.
"I take it we're going to walk through it." Young Allison said.
Cameron looked up towards the top of the hill.
"It will save us some time if we do." Cameron said.
Young Allison looked up at the 'tell tale' as they passed by it. She noticed one thing right away when they approached the tunnel portal to enter.
"We can't see the other end of it." Young Allison said. "I can see this is a curved tunnel."
Cameron didn't think it would be a problem. It was only approximately four hundred feet longer than Tunnel 28 was.
"Tunnel 27 is six feet short of being one thousand feet long." Cameron said. "It's just under a fifth of a mile in length."
Young Allison could see the interior of the tunnel had been coated with some type of cement or plaster. She could see it was sprayed over the rock as well as the wooden support beams inside of it.
"What's the coating that's been sprayed on here?" Young Allison asked. "Is it what they called Gunite?"
Cameron looked at the substance sprayed over everything in the tunnel except the tracks.
"You're correct." Cameron said. "I don't think they want another tunnel fire in this tunnel."
Young Allison was relieved when she could see the other end of the tunnel as they went around the curve. She could see there was a block signal on the straight section of track between the west portal of Tunnel 27 and the eastern portal of Tunnel 26.
Cameron and Young Allison exited back into the sunlight.
Walk In The Park
Many things in life
Are in a giant arc
The destination differs little
On whatever one will embark
Along the winding route
They may spot a familiar landmark
Do they want to enter the realm
Of a known monarch
When one seems overly friendly
Make sure they're not a lark
The current surroundings around one
Is something they must hark
Listen to every remark
They may becomes one's hallmark
The tone may be quite stark
If everything is a veiled snark
When one steps out after dark
Listen to every bark
Few things turn out to be
A walk in the park
Nobody