Days of Sky Net

by keithallen

sequel to the 'day' series. John Junior and his crew have gone home. Now, John Connor faces the coming of sky net, and the rush to prepare for it. Knowing when J-day will arrive and having the time and knowledge to prepare for it, John is in a better position than humanity originally was. But then again so is Sky Net. Forget the 'genre', as always, I'll go all over the place.

30. Chapter 30

CH 30

Being 'Sky Net' North America, John Henry was receiving a wealth of data from the Sky Net communications. He'd convinced Sky Net that South America was being 'purged' of humans, and took responsibility for setting up a new segment there. he had all the Sky Net codes and movements.

For now, Australia was being all but ignored by Sky Net Asia, it was the North American Segment's task to resolve that situation. Europe, however was Sky Net Asia's the number one concern. More units were headed for Europe. In recycling destroyed units from the battlefields, Sky Net learned that there was a new terminator that was not it's own. The TX was being given the designation Terminator X. Machines were being studied on how the biological skin was bonded onto these units. None recovered so far had a chip in them. The liquid metal parts were also being analyzed and reverse engineering was being done in the Hamburg labs. These terminators were visually indistinct from humans and superior to Sky Net's own units. Once Sky Net copied them, it had a way to infiltrate the humans, find and kill John Connor once and for all. Once Connor was terminated, the human resistance would fall apart.

Noting the locations of the Sky Net segments and it's plans, John Henry shared all this information with Catherine Weaver and John Connor.

.

The one day meeting with Derek and his group turned into two as John received the information John Henry had. John saw right away that as long as they were in Europe, Australia was open for recovery. Having the location of every Sky Net segment, it was also time to strike.

John showed Derek and his group where the Sky Net segments were. Facing them, John pointed each out on his maps. "Derek, the one you're seeing in Dover, is the Warsaw segment, in Poland. To the south in Istanbul, there is another, out here in the Ukraine at Kursk, is another. Those are the ones closest to you. The Istanbul segment will be attacked with Tomahawks. If you can get the Warsaw segment, that will disorganize the west European Sky Net units so you can clean those up."

"Sounds nice," Derek said in a even tone. "Do you have any idea how many of them there are?"

Quoting John Henry, John said, "One million, four hundred thousand T-800's, 193,000 H/K tanks, 16,423 flying H/K's, 59 experimental artillery units, 1,363,000 utility transports. The closest factory, the one where Sky Net has some of our TX's to study them is in Hamburg, Germany, there's another factory in Bermen, Germany, another in Dresden, and an H/K factory ten miles north of the Prauge. The one in Hamburg is a priority target. We can't let Sky Net copy our TX's."

"No, we can't," Marisa said, and sniffled. "Just the thought of Sky Net tearing them apart to examine them..."

"Not a nice thought," John agreed. "Tina, you will need to take a submarine through the Denmark straights to get to the segment in Warsaw. The Onyx will arrive in Margate to get you to the gulf of Danzig to the mouth of the Vistula river in Poland. There, you can go inland under water and undetected all the way to Warsaw. The river runs right through the city. It will take longer, but much less chance of discovery. That also means you won't have to strip your skin off."

Tina nodded, looking relieved. "I do want to save my skin if possible," she said.

"I also have the current Sky Net codes," John told her and handed her the copy John Henry gave him. Seeing Derek eye them, John told him, "John Henry has been providing great intelligence."

Derek nodded. "So, we know what Sky Net is up to. We just have to go destroy all of these segments."

"That would be ideal," John agreed. "The fact is, we can't get to all of them, so we get the ones we can, as soon as we can. The moment the Warsaw Sky Net is down, attack Hamburg, as close as you can get to it. The Elbe river leads up to it. Subs, ships, whatever you can get there fast, and get rid of that factory and make sure none of those TX bodies can be used for research."

Marisa looked at Derek and said, "If I may, I would like to lead that attack, General."

"We will have three carriers to assist you, as well as missile cruisers with Tomahawks carrying thermite warheads." John told Derek. "Melt that place into the ground."

"Yes, General."

John gave a nod and asked, "Is there any questions?" No one had any, so he added, "Good, we'll fly you back today so you can get started. Good luck people."

Before Derek could stop her, or Cameron intercept her, Marisa scooted over to hug John again. "Thank you general!" she said happy.

"You need to be on your way," Cameron said flatly as she stared at Marisa.

Although Cameron was steaming about Marisa's behavior, she cancelled the HUD display that marked Marisa for termination. She was leaving, and would no longer be a bother to John. Besides, with Allison here, Cameron didn't want to make a bad impression on Alison. After they left, Cameron made sure she got some good hugs and kisses. After all, it was her John.

.

Catherine Weaver sent a fleet to Australia. the USS Midway, CV-41, packed with ground attack planes and H/K's, five cruisers, six destroyers and a pair of LST landing craft her factories built to carry the Stugs, with two submarines for under water defense. The Hornet was still being reconstructed, it would make the next trip. General Perry's second, Lt. General Majors, was in command. His job was to remove all Sky Net units and recycle as many terminators as possible. With the fleet, Catherine also sent a facility to re-educated the terminators they subdued, and plans for factories to build new ones.

Catherine's scout force had landed on the Sunshine Coast, 50 miles north of Brisbane. Of course, Brisbane itself had been hit with a Nuclear bomb. Spreading out, the scouts found survivors and all were hot for payback. They were ready to give whoever attacked them 'a good spanking'. In organizing the survivors, the scouts for them joining the terminator hunts. In a hundred mile circle, the combined force had cleared he area of any active Sky Net terminators. A few bushmen who happened to reach the coast had .50 cal rifles that were crack shots, and took down Sky Net terminators with a shot right on their chip port, or through the right eye. Another sub arrived to tell them the fleet was coming with more reinforcements.

At Darwin in the Northern Territories, two ships controlled by Sky Net landed. Terminators filed off the ships to find out what happened to Sky Net Australia.

.

Daniel and Claire returned to collect Allison. Cameron, John and Allison met them upon arrival at the security gates of the Cheyenne Complex.

"Welcome back, Mommy and Daddy!" Announced happily and ran into her mother with a hug. Pulling back, Allison beamed, "Cameron made a new game with me, I got to see the gardens, they are BIG! I even got to see the train station waaaay underground, and there's even a long hallway with lots of stores called a shopping mall here!"

"Wow," Claire beamed back. "I take it you had fun?"

"I did!"

"How was the vacation?" John asked.

"Great, we didn't want to come home," Daniel said with a grin.

"Everyone was kind and helpful," Claire added. "It was very relaxing." Holding up a soft covered book, she said, "We even got a book on the Maya language."

"Their language is more expressive and colorful that we imagined," Daniel agreed. "It's also complex."

"It is, worse than English," Claire agreed. "They are changing their national language over from Spanish. After seeing their history, I think is the right thing to do."

With a grin, Daniel said, "And if you want to learn they are more than willing to help you along."

"I'm glad you had a good time," Cameron said and hugged Daniel and Claire. "Allison had been a joy to have around."

"Ally's a pretty good girl," Daniel said proudly. "I'm glad you enjoyed each other's company."

"We had fun," Cameron said with an open smile.

"We did!" Allison readily agreed.

"Are you gong to stay for a day or two?" John asked.

Daniel winced. "We'd love to, really, but in the morning we have to get back."

With a sigh, Claire nodded and said, "Yes, our work awaits, unfortunately."

"We are all having dinner tonight, correct?" Cameron asked.

"We are," Claire agreed.

"And I'll help, and help make breakfast in the morning, too," Allison proclaimed.

Cameron asked her, "Will you help me go get the ice cream too?"

"You have Ice cream?" Claire asked, surprised to hear it.

Cameron cast her a wink and said, "Made it myself. Pistachio."

.

Claire and Allison helped Cameron make dinner, which was to say they had a female party in the kitchen while Daniel and John talked in the sitting room.

"By what I'm hearing, we are doing well against Sky Net?" Daniel asked.

"In some places," John replied. "We have advantages, but Sky Net has also had a boost from the beginning. It's not so one-sided as it was in the previous future. Unless we are very careful, we won't keep those advantages. After the bombs were dropped, Sky Net was expecting to finish us off, not have to seriously fight us. Sky Net is an AI that learns fast. If we can keep destroying it's parts and factories, we have a decent chance of winning so long as we keep the few advantages we have."

Daniel nodded and said, "I noticed that in the we're waiting longer for the military to collect supplies. I've gotten to know the supply and transport system well. It's not the system that's slowed down, it's the lack of personnel to move goods that is the problem. For instance, we have about nine tons of frozen fish to transport, but it's waiting for pickup. I'd like to join the Supply corps. I want to help get things moved. I'm just afraid I'll end up on the line someplace. That, I don't want. I have a wife and a child."

"Understood," John replied. "Well, everyone goes through basic training so you know how to fight, but you're right, we do need supply and support people. Daniel, you grow fish in the caverns, correct?"

"I do. I was one of the first to set up fish farms," Daniel told him.

John thought for a moment, then said, "Australia. We've yet to supply any clean food there. I can task you with setting up fish farms and gardens there. The temperature's better and the radiation is a little less, except for around the cities. How would that be?"

Daniel grinned and said, "Great!"

"I'll send Catherine a message that you're coming to get food production started there. So far, we're finding more survivors than wandering T-800's, so I'll have her give you a small staff. You can get more recruits from the locals," John explained. He then asked, "Will Claire be OK with this?"

"Yes, she loved Cancun," Daniel said. "Do you know where in Australia?"

John shook his head. "That's up to Catherine. Right now, our forces are on the East Coast, I'm sure we will be expanding out. You'll have to go where you are needed."

"I can live with that," Daniel agreed.

"Then when you're ready, go see my mother Sarah on where to join, I'll let her and Catherine know you're coming," John said brightly. "If you can get a couple of your fellow fish farmers to come with you, that will be a big help."

"DINNER!" Allison yelled.

.

At Margate, England, Tina was the only TX in the group of 50 terminators that watched the ONYX come to the surface and pull up to the end of the dock. All of them wore sealed backpacks filled with explosives, det cord and timers. Tia made sure they had their eye-flash communications down. The would be spending their trip underwater. Instead of getting down into the sub, Tina and her group got on top and held onto the railings. At the back of the sail, Tina plugged the USB wire hanging out, into the back of her head.

"Captain, we are on board and ready to depart."

"Very good. At the back of the sail, there is an optical scanner. You can use morse code into that scanner to communicate if the USB connection fails. We will get you as close to the river mouth as possible and let you off. I would ask you and your troops to lay down to help a bit with streamlining. We can go a bit faster."

"Yes, Captain, will do."

The sub pulled out away from the dock. Heading back out to sea, it dove with Tina and her terminators laying on deck, heading for the gulf of Danzig.

In the harbor near Bristol, The fleet was arriving. H/K's took to the air to begin scanning the channel. A flight of ground attack planes took off for an airport in the east. Derek was relieved, he now had air cover.

.

"AUSTRALIA!" Cameron and Claire cried at the same time as they gaped at Daniel.

"Yes, " Daniel said brightly. "We can help those people and do it in a warmer climate."

"But, why Australia?" Claire asked. "Daniel, we have jobs, Allison is going to school now. This is a big move!"

"John, Australia is not secure," Cameron stated.

"No Sky Net segment has been found in Australia," John replied. To back Daniel up, he said, "Only random terminators. The people there need assistance, and right now, we don't have anyone else that can make the fish farms and gardens they need for radiation free food."

Trying to make light of the move, Daniel shrugged and said, "It's the land down under. You know, where women glow and men plunder?"

With a scowl, Claire said, "That's not funny. Daniel, we have a life in the caverns. Mid-Cavern is our home. WHY do you want to move to friggin Australia?"

John winced, knowing this wasn't going to be good. "Daniel has decided to enlist and, he has been assigned to lead the Australian support division."

The glares turned to John.

"WHY John?" Cameron asked.

"Daniel is an expert in fish farming," John stated. "He also knows well how to make the gardens they are going to need."

"Why send Daniel?" Cameron asked.

"Because he wants to help, and we need his help," John replied firmly. He knew why Cameron was upset, he also knew he needed willing volunteers whenever possible.

Claire eyed Daniel and stated, "Well if you want to volunteer, that's up to you. That doesn't mean Allison and I are going!"

Daniel cast her a hurt look. "Claire? I thought you'd like to live in a better climate?Wasn't Cancun nice?"

"The weather was nice," Claire agreed. "I also noticed the gun batteries on the shore and the patrol planes flying by. Women who were hugging their men goodbye as the men left in uniforms, carrying rifles! Yes, nice weather IN. A. War. Zone! I do not want to live like that, and I sure as HELL do not want Allison to live like that! Yes, the caverns are not the best scenery but they are SAFE!"

Becoming upset with his wife, Daniel said, "I have to do my part."

In a small voice, Allison said, "Daddy, please don't go."

Daniel looked at Allison's stricken face, he nearly crumbled. Taking a deep breath, he said, "Ally, hon, I have to go. This is something that needs to be done. If we don't do what we need to, then our caverns won't be safe any more."

Cameron's left hand twitched. In a heavy tone, she said, "Allison, Dad is right. I do not enjoy this war, no one does. If we don't do what we feel is right, then all is lost. I don't like it one bit, but some things have to be."

Allison cast Cameron a pleading look. "But ... can't you go and scare those things away? You're the Tin Miss, right?"

Cameron's hand twitched harder. "Allison, my primary job is to protect and assist John. John is Sky Net's number one target. He is our lead General. I must ensure Sky Net does not get to him."

Seeing Cameron's hand twitching open and shut, John said, "Allison, Cameron has suffered being beaten, shot, having her skin torn off, all to make sure I stay safe. I need her here. There are others like her in Australia to make sure your Dad stays safe. He is not going to be fighting Sky Net, but providing food for those who do."

"But, Daddy will still be far away," Allison complained.

"Yes, it cannot be helped," Cameron told her.

Allison teared up and began to cry. Claire put an arm around her and said, "Come dear," and led her away from the table. She cast a sad face back at Daniel and led her daughter out.

Daniel planted his elbows on the table and his face in his hands. "Shit!" he spat.

"Perhaps that would have gone better if you would have discussed it first," Cameron said stiffly. She got up. "John, I need to go talk to them."

John only nodded. He noticed her left hand was still going. Cameron wasn't happy. At least he didn't get the red eyes, yet.

.

Cameron stopped in the kitchen to get Allison a small bowl of Pistachio ice cream. She then went to The Young's quarters and went in. Hearing Allison sob, Cameron found them coming out of the bathroom. "We need to talk," she said. She held the bowl in her right hand so she wouldn't crush it in her twitching left hand.

"Did John talk Daniel into this?" Claire asked heavily. She sat down on the couch, holding Allison.

"No. John would not do that," Cameron stated. She set the bowl on the table and asked, "Allison? I made this myself, could you tell me if it's any good?"

Allison nodded and got up to pick the bowl up and take it to the dinning room. She didn't sit at the table, but stood just inside the doorway to listen.

"Ice cream won't fix this," Claire stated.

Cameron was unhappy with the whole situation. Even though she didn't like Daniel heading off to Australia, she accepted it. Claire should also, but wasn't. She didn't mean to, but her eyes turned red.

Claire shrunk back. "What is that?" she asked.

"Sorry, I am not happy right now," Cameron told her flatly. "I'm not happy with Dad, John, or you. Allison doesn't understand, I can deal with that. I thought you would know better."

"What, because I don't want my husband to go away on us?" Claire asked.

"Do you remember Cindy? What you and John told me when she decided to go off and join the resistance?" Cameron asked.

"That's different," Claire said.

"No, no difference," Cameron replied. "You told me Cindy did what she had to do. John told me the same thing. This is something Dad has to do. I don't like it one bit, but the choice is his. Not yours, not mine, not John's. He feels he needs to contribute to helping those who right now, have no help. I will do what I can to ensure his safety, but if this is what Dad feels he must do, then we need to let him do it."

"He has responsibilities!" Claire hissed back.

"Yes, he does," Cameron agreed. "You are right that Allison cannot be in danger. You are also wrong about Dad's responsibilities being only to his family. We are all responsible to each other, no matter who or what we are. That is how we are succeeding. If we loose that, we unravel and Sky Net wins. Daniel will have support of those with him will help watch out for him. Since he will be making the basic nutrition everyone needs, I am sure he will be well guarded."

Tears welled in Claire's eyes. "I don't want to loose my husband," she said weakly.

"I don't either," Cameron said softer. The red glow in her eyes faded. "That fact is, we are at war. I did not want Cindy to die, but she did. Cindy gave her life to help defeat Sky Net. Many have. More will. I can only do my best to see Dad doesn't." Cameron forced her hand to stop twitching. It worked for 2.7 seconds. "Mother, I want Sky Net gone. If it were possible, I'd go do it myself. The fact is, Sky Net is world wide, and I alone can't destroy it. It's going to take everyone."

Claire nodded slowly. She eyed Cameron and said, "You have been at the front of this war from the very beginning, haven't you?"

"Not the very beginning, but I was in the previous future. I know much about Sky Net, what it can do, and what we need to defeat it. That is one of the reasons John keeps me close," Cameron explained.

Claire let out a snort and said, "You've been at the broken end of a bottle most of your life. First with your original time line, and now this one."

"That is a fairly accurate assessment, yes," Cameron agreed.

"We haven't. I'm scared, Cameron. I don't want Daniel to die, or to have Allison grow up with no father," Claire said with a sniffle.

"I understand. The good news is that in the previous future, Allison's parents died on J-day when the bombs fell. She had no one but the Reese brothers and John. Then ... I happened and she ceased to exist. This time, that did not happen."

.

Allison perked up. She ceased to exist? she died? What did Cameron mean 'then she happened'? Allison peeked out of the doorway. her mother and Cameron were talking on the couch, facing away from her. This ice cream was really good, but now, she was focused on what was being talked about.

.

"I am very happy Allison was spared what you went through," Claire said firmly. "That is due to your efforts. Even though you claim you're not in there, your actions prove you are!"

"Yes, Mom," Cameron said simply. She wasn't going to argue with the woman.

Claire let out a huff and said, "I suppose I have to accept Daniel going away. Not that I like it."

"I don't either," Cameron agreed.

"Let's get back to the boys," Claire said and got up.

.

Allison quickly finished up her ice cream, giving herself a small headache. She ran out to hold the empty bowl up to Cameron. "I finished it, that was really good! What does living at the broken end of a bottle mean?"

Cameron noted where she'd come from. By the doorway. Allison had been listening. "It means living with the threat of, or in danger."

"All the time?" Allison asked.

"Much of the time. You don't have to worry about that," Cameron assured her.

Cameron had the bowl, but Allison still held on as she looked up at Cameron. She asked, "What did you mean I died when you happened?"

Quickly, Cameron said, "That will not happen now."

"Allison! You should not listen in on other people. That's called eves dropping and it's rude!" Claire said firmly.

"Sorry, mom," Allison said, not taking her eyes off Cameron. She then asked, "So, what happened?"

Cameron looked at Allison for a moment, then said , "Once you are old enough to understand, I will explain."

"Hon, you don't need to now," Claire said gently.

"But ... if it's something that happened to me, don't I get to know about it?" Allison asked, still looking at Cameron.

Cameron looked away towards the door. In a flat tone, she said, "We need to return." Thankfully, Allison was holding her right hand with the bowl, not the left that began twitching more.

"Cameron, why is your hand doing that?" Allison asked, noting the quick movements.

"It is a malfunction that presents itself when I am frustrated or angry. It is an emotional response I cannot control," Cameron said in her flat tone.

Claire went to touch her left hand. Cameron jerked away. "It is dangerous to do that."

"Dangerous?" Claire asked.

"Yes, John tried to hold that hand when I was angry at Cindy. I inadvertently crushed his hand."

"oh."

.

For the big blow up at the table earlier, things calmed down. Doing what she could to stop everyone being mad at each other, Allison bragged at how good the ice cream was, and helped Cameron get more for everyone.

Allison watched Cameron the rest of the night. Specifically, her left hand. The twitching did die down when peace was made between their mother and father, and finally stopped when they had to go to bed. The next day, they went and got their pictures taken, all together. Cameron got one, so did Daniel and Claire. Cameron drove them to the airport where they had a teary goodbye.

On the way home, Allison's mind was churning. What she heard her mother and Cameron talking about stayed fresh in her mind.

Returning to school the next day, Allison had a question in science class. Before the class began, she went up to the teacher and asked, "Was there a previous future?"

The woman smiled at her and said, "People did come back from our future to change it for the better."

"So, the Tin Miss came back from the future?" Allison asked.

"I believe she did. Her proper name is Cameron Connor."

"I know. So Cameron fought Sky Net before, in this original future?" Allison asked.

The teacher leaned towards her. "These are some very thoughtful questions you're asking, Miss Young. Is there a reason why you are so interested in time travel?"

Shifting foot to foot, Allison meekly said, "I heard Cameron say that when she happened ... someone else died. Do you know what she meant?"

"No, I do not. You know Cameron Connor?"

"She's my sister," Allison stated.

"Your sister?" the teacher asked, surprised. "Allison, Cameron is one of those terminators. She's not human."

Allison frowned and asked, "So ... what did Mom mean when she told Cameron, you're still in there?"

The teacher cupped a hand to her mouth. "What else did your mother say?" she asked.

"That Cameron had been at the front of this war, even in the first time ... and Cameron has lived at the broken end of a bottle for most of her life ..." Allison felt weird telling her this, but she needed to find out, "And Cameron said ... someone died when she happened, but that won't happen now."

The teacher nodded slowly, then said, "Miss Young, I'd like to speak with your mother." She quickly wrote out a note and said, "Give this to her. Take your seat please."

"Yes, ma'am," Allison said. She put the note in her bag and went to sit down. Allison did listen in class, but her mind was working on the conversation she heard between Cameron and her mother.

At the last class of the day, Allison spent her practice time writing out what she knew, like a scientist was suppose to do.

Cameron had fought Sky Net before, and was fighting it again. Cameron was a terminator.

The first time, Allison had lost her parents to the nuclear bombs, John and the Reese brothers had taken care of her.

When Cameron 'happened', Allison died.

Her mother insisted Cameron was her daughter.

The time lines were split just before Sky Net attacked.

Allison made a line and forked it to show when the time lines split. She drew a stick figure of herself before the split. Cameron was older, she drew a stick figure of Cameron on the 1 line, and herself on the 2 line. She added a stick figure Cameron on the 2 line. Cameron had said she died when Cameron happened. She drew a vertical line on Stick figure line 1 Cameron's side, the drew a line from herself to the 1 line by Cameron. She then drew a semicircular line from Cameron's stick figure, down and back to the split.

Allison frowned at it, if Cameron was here the first time, then came back, then there should be two Camerons now. There wasn't.

When Cameron happened, Allison died.

Mom had told Cameron 'you're still in there'. Cameron was a terminator. Why did Mom say that? Looking at the drawing, Allison saw on the 2 line, there was her and Cameron. On the one line there was her, then Cameron.

"What is this?" the teacher asked, looking over Allison's shoulder.

Allison explained that the picture was. The teacher gaped at it briefly and said, "May I keep this? this was some good scientific work you did."

"Thank you!" Allison beamed.

"Class is over for the day, everyone make sure you collect your things," the teacher announced.

After the class filed out, she studied the picture. The implications of what Allison drew out were staggering. The teacher then went to find Mrs. Young.

.

Talking with the teacher, Claire knew Allison was digging for the truth by herself. She had to tell her daughter what she knew. Now in possession of Allison's drawing, Claire took Allison home. Daniel was doing his enlistment thing, she he wouldn't be home until dinner.

"Honey, sit here with me," Claire said and took out her drawing.

Allison sat by her mother. Seeing the drawing, she winced.

"It' all right, dear," Claire said gently. "You did well on figuring it out for yourself."

"I did?" Allison asked.

"Yes." Pointing to where the stick figure with e 'C' over on the first time line was, Claire said "You have it right. Here is where Cameron came to be. She came back and made things different for us."

Allison nodded. "Yes, but what happened to me?"

Claire took a breath and said, "The first time, things for all of us were much tougher. You, Allison, made a very hard decision. To be more effective, you had yourself made into a terminator so you were able to fight Sky Net better. When you did that, you were no longer human. You felt you were no longer Allison, so you took the name Cameron."

Allison stared at her mother. "I did?"

"You did. Cameron is you, from the first time line. The one thing Cameron was insistent on, was that you in this second time line, never have to go through what she went through. Cameron's body is now flesh covered metal. Her exterior, and part of her brain is all that's left of her original body. It has taken Cameron a long time to learn how to be more or less human again. She came back to help John and make sure you stay safe."

"Cameron is ... me?" Allison asked weakly. "That's what she meant by I died when she happened?"

Gently, Claire said, "Yes, dear. If the same circumstances had occurred, you would ... you did loose your humanity for the sake of others. That was the bravest thing I have ever heard of. And thanks to Cameron ... you, your future will be much better now."

Allison stared off at nothing. "But ... why did I change my name?"

"You were convinced at the time that you were now a machine, and the human named Allison was dead. That is what I got from Cameron. Only Cameron herself can tell you the details. Personally, I think she'd rather forget them."

"Wow," Allison said softly. "So, there is two of me."

"Essentially, yes."

Allison blinked and weakly said, "It feels like my head is spinning." She then looked at her mother. "So that's why you told Cameron 'you're still in there."

"That's right. To remind her she's not just a machine. Somewhere inside that metal body, my little girl exists. I tell her that to let her know she has, and will always have her family," Claire said firmly.

"Is there anyone else there are two of?" Allison asked.

"I don't know."

Allison frowned and said, "If I ever have to become a machine ... I'm going to keep my name so everyone knows who I am!"

Claire ginned at her. "You do that," she said and hugged Allison.

.

"Captain to Tina, comms check."

Submerged and lying on the deck of Onyx as water flowed past, Tina heard the check and responded. "Tina here. Comms check SAT, Captain."

"We're approaching the drop off point. Once we're in the delta, I'll set the ship on the bottom. Just follow the water flow upstream, and you'll be in the river."

"Understood, Captain," Tina replied. The water was looking a little darker. Tina could see the surface above, but around them was a greenish water. She was able to make out every terminator on the deck. She flashed her eyes in the code to get them all standing up. The terminator with the extra pack too the smaller pack off and pulled out the rope. He put the rope around the bottom of a rail stantion and let the rope float out behind him, then moved the rope through the stantion until both ends were trailing along behind them at an equal length.

"Captain, we are ready to depart," Tina told the captain.

The sub slowed. Tina saw the bottom coming up. The sub stayed at depth and slowly skidded to a stop.

"Tina, we're as close as we can get. Godspeed to you. Rap the hull twice when you are all off."

"Understood, Captain." Tina said, and eye flashed for them to depart. She isolated her USB port and pulled the cord out of the back of her head.

The first terminator grabbed the rope and swung down to lower himself to the bottom. He held the rope down as the next one, then the next climbed down the rope. Tina stayed by the rope as her terminators collected below. One they were all off, Tina climbed down and pulled one end of the rope to hand it to the terminator with the spare bag. He coiled the rope off and put it away. Tina walked to the bow and gave two raps on the hull with her knuckles. She led her terminators into the flow of the river as the Onyx backed away. Mud was kicked up from them walking and the Onyx backing away. Thankfully, the water flow kept the dark muddy water behind them.

Tina knew the distance they had to travel, and the turns in the river she could expect. They were on their own now, and John Connor was counting on her.

.

A high air recon of the Hamburg area showed a good portion of the river to Hamburg was frozen over hard with a snow covering. Studying the videos and the still pictures, Derek and Marisa identified the factory complex and another side building that had the roads cleared for traffic.

"We're only going to get the fleet to the back of the bay," Laura said. "Sky Net units will have plenty of time to react to a land attack."

"Yeah," Derek agreed. "The first assault will have to be by air, and the heavier ship guns. The subs will have to beach here, on the western side of the bay."

"We have two LST's, can they beach on the ice?" Marisa asked.

"Too risky. They will have to beach with the subs," Derek said. "The initial attack has to be by air. Get them looking up, it will give the ground forces a better chance at getting a solid hold on a beachhead."

"Our planes and ships will be very busy at the beginning of the battle," Marisa noted.

"Yup, they will. I want the Hamburg factory and this building hit hard at the same time as the beach, and this H/K landing area," Derek told her. "The instant Sky Net goes silent, we go in for the attack. By Tina's calculations, it will take her 10 days to get to Warsaw, figure another two to find Sky Net and attack it, so be ready to go 12 days from now. The Onyx should have dropped them off today."

"Will do, General," Marisa stated.

Derek turned to the speedboat squadron commander. "Grenfield, the day before the attack, get your boats down to the french west coast. Make lots of radio traffic. Make those Sky Net units think every human on the planet is there. Make up unit names, issue orders, make up attack plans, talk about baking a cake or the asses of girls on the beach, just make enough noise so you get their attention. Then, get the hell out of there."

"Very good, sir, we will shout loud enough for them to hear us in Russia," Commander Grenfield said, and snapped a British salute.

"All right, we now what to do, so let's get ready to do it," Derek stated.

.

For the next ten days, Derek checked on any further information on Sky Net. All he was finding was Sky Net troops were hunting for them in France, and still looking for them in Spain. Marisa reported the fleet was ready. Laura new he was nervous and did her best to calm him down. Anne was a good influence on Derek for that. On the morning of the eleventh day, he had Grenfield depart in his 20 speedboats to go along the French west coast and call out with false radio signals to get Sky Net units chasing him to that coast. He just hoped Tina was on time.

.

Ice covered the river over Tina's head. That helped in their stealth, but there was all kinds of debris on the bottom. Sunken boats, WW2 scrap including tanks, and various other things made going a little tougher than she had imagined. Coming to bridge supports on day 6, Tina decided to break through the ice and had a terminator take a peek above to see what was there. She was feeling anxious that they were falling behind. Much further, and the river bent away from her goal. She was hoping for a shortcut to Warsaw.

The terminator returned to stick his head underwater and report : The road was plowed and went south. No signs of Sky Net units.

South was good, they could pick up the river again and get back in to continue on. Tina ordered an exit up onto the road. Two terminators in the lead, Tina and her group ran down the road, keeping a watch out for any Sky Net units. Tina's flesh was freezing, but she could not worry about that now. She didn't dare heat herself up and possibly alert a Sky Net Unit she was here with an infrared signature.

A 30 mile run down the road and they met the river again. Breaking back into the river under a bridge, they returned to the river bottom and continued on. Figuring the distance they had made quickly, Tina calculated they were now a half a day ahead. Keeping up a good pace under water, by day 10, they had made the marker bridge that spanned the middle of Warsaw. Just beyond was the boat launch she marked for coming up out of the river. Breaking up through the ice was tougher here, due to the thickness. A terminator did it, punching a hole up through the ten inches of ice. He climbed out and reported it was safe to exit.

Up and out of the water, Tina's group looked for a staging area. A wrecked boat house was found. Tina and most of the group went inside. Two terminators that had signal direction finders went out looking for Sky Net's position. By nightfall, they returned. Sky Net was in the southern part of the city, inside a factory building that the structure had survived the bombing. The antenna was was inside the center of the roofless building, the power supply was in a concrete bunker. Tina had the timers set to go off at 5AM. Leaving the boat house, she stayed in the middle of the pack of terminators.

The terminator guards around the buildings didn't stop them as they trooped on by. four of her group went to destroy the power supply and the power cables. Tina and six others got inside the main building and headed up to find the antennae ducting to plant charges there and on the antenna wire itself. Others hunted for the server rooms to set their charges as close to Sky Net as possible.

Going up the stairs, Tina followed her lead terminator. They found the antenna base and put two charges in place and activated the timers. It was while setting the charge in place that Tina realized her flesh had suffered massive damage from the cold. In removing her backpack, she felt her shoulder flesh slide. She opened her coat to find her flesh had turned black. By her shoulder, it was cracked and a yellow pudding like substance leaked out.

She should have left her flesh back at base. It was all ruined now. Damn.

At 4:45, Tina walked out, collecting her terminators. With eye flashes, she confirmed everything was set to bring the building down, all charges set to go off at once.

Walking out of the building the way they came in, Tina again stayed in the middle of her group to obscure her presence. Coming up the road towards them, another column of terminators were marching. Tina coaxed hers to take the side street. In their move to the side, she was exposed briefly. She saw the other terminators raise their guns. Tina did the only thing she could think of. "Fire on that column!" she announced and brought out her plasma guns. Her terminators aimed at the column. The column fired first.

In front of her, plasma shots melted terminators. Tina fire both of hers and ducked between the buildings. Others moved towards cover as they shot. Tina felt a hot plasma bolt skid across her back. Many of her terminators fell, sparking where limbs and body was melted away.. She peeked out to fire another two bolts out and ducked back as those terminators fell. A rain of plasma fire destroyed the corner of the building making her jump back.

"Cover the other end of the block, find a clear way out!" Tina commanded. She waited by the corner, crouched. A terminator came into view, she hit that one, then another that appeared. Marching feet from the other direction told her terminators from the Sky Net building were coming. This was not good!

"Left side on the other end is clear," one of her terminators announced as he stepped out to shoot, and got hit by three plasma bolts, all but obliterating him. Tina gauged the angle, shot two more bolts, then fled to the other end of the block. "Retreat, follow me!" she called.

In the heavy rain of plasma fire back and forth, only eleven terminators were able to comply. Tina crashed into the door of the closest building. Her terminators followed her in. She ran through the building back to the street she started from. Just before she reached the door an explosion shook the building hard. a beam fell with some ceiling. Dust filled the air in the room, and went rolling by outside. Tina went out to see the Sky Net building had collapsed. Sky net was gone. She got her terminators across the street and into the remains of another building in the dust cloud. Watching the street, she looked for any silver terminators following her. None did.

"Status, are there any Sky Net signals?" she asked.

"Unknown. the signal finders were destroyed in the fight," the terminator to her side replied.

This was not good at all. Tina counted only nine of her terminators left.

The dust was clearing. The building Sky Net had been in was leveled, most of the power building was gone, the remains were burning. With no tower, even if Sky Net here was not destroyed, it was not calling for help any time soon. The remaining silver terminators were hurrying towards the destruction. "Let's go," she said and went out a hole in the ruins away from those terminators.

It that occurred to Tina that although their route here was carefully planned out. There was no plan for their recovery. She and her small band that were left deep into Europe with no way out. They had to work on making exit plans. She led the remains of her force towards the coast, maybe they could find a boat.

.