Ch 32
The transport Fred Canton and his fellow engineers- some human, got on was a new 'fast transport' that was long and slim. 500 feet long, the ship was only 40 feet wide, making it easier to cut through the water. By what he had been told in the pre-deployment briefing, it was capable of 70 knots and had a bow-ramp where they loaded on and exited personnel and equipment from, including many of the bridge segments he'd seen being built. Fred and his battalion of engineers got the equipment stored in the lower decks as it came in, then went to the mid-decks to get their quarters for the journey. Once everything was stored, the bow was closed up. Never having been on a ship before, he, like many others went topside to see them pull away from the dock. They moved slow into the bay to see six other fast transports. On the rear sections of each deck were H/K's that would provide cover for the transports as needed.
Another fast transport pulled out of the docks. Once all eight were free of the docks, they moved out for the ocean. Heading out to sea, the ships moved faster and faster in a dual line formation of four ships each.
The wind from their motion blew over Fred. Feeling the sensation, Fred enjoyed the wind flowing over him. He decided he had made a very good choice in joining the resistance. Never before had he experienced things he enjoyed. He wanted all terminators to get the chance at experiencing new things as he was .
Some like Fred, stayed up on the main deck as the ships sped through the water. Others went back below after the land was lost in sight behind them. Watching the other ships, Fred noted these transports were not squarish on top. The upper part was angled back in a triangular shape. There were no tall masts, each ship was smooth on the outside. Even the J/K's on the back deck were lined up in a single file line.
An H/K on the ship across from theirs lifted up and sped off ahead of them. He watched it fly off into the distance. From his training, he understood this was for 'recon', flying out to see what was ahead of them. Although land was plotted, things like storms and other ships were not. The H/K's were also for fleet defense, should they run into any Sky Net units. On the upper decks, Plasma canons and missiles were also housed, as was countermeasures. Even though these transports looked simple, there was much to them.
After a day and night of watching what was around them, Fred went down to the 'monitor' room to look at the incoming signals. Radar, sonar and ship position screens. Many terminators had returned to quarters and gone into standby. There were some humans down here, getting some food and watching the displays. They seemed as curious as he was about this new experience of being at sea.
"Hello, Fred," a female voice said from beside him.
Fred turned to see one of the humans in their battalion, had come to watch the displays with him. "Hello Gloria Decker, how are you today?"
The blonde cast him a smirk and said, "You can just call me Gloria. This ship is awesome, isn't it?"
"Yes, it is. It is a new and very pleasant experience to be on board," Fred agreed.
"You are a new TX?" she asked.
"Being a TX is new for me. I was a Sky Net T-800 before this. After we were beaten, I was pulled from my old body and went to Catherine Waver's school. I must say, I enjoy being a TX. My old body and thoughts I was allowed was very restrictive. I prefer being a TX."
"Good for you," Gloria beamed. "I hear it will take us a month to get to Australia?"
"Yes, that is the estimated time of arrival. We are also stopping at the port on the Hawaiian Islands for two days. There is rebuilding to do there. We are dropping off supplies, and picking up some food stores." Fred replied.
"Hear that. I noticed the daily clouds are getting thinner. I'm hoping it will keep getting warmer," Gloria said with a sigh. "It's been like, eight years of nothing but winter. It's getting old."
"Yes, eight years is old for a winter," Fred agreed.
Gloria laughed.
Fred smiled at her. He didn't know why what he said was funny, but enjoyed the sound of her laugh. It was nice being a TX.
.
John was finding the Resistance was still growing by leaps and bounds. The human population now was 2.4 million, the machine population was 1.7 million. 342,000 men and women in the armed resistance. There were also 932,000 Terminators of various types in the armed resistance. They had complete control of North and South America, and Derek had secured the British Isles and was cleaning up the large masses of uncoordinated Sky Net Units in Europe. They had a growing presence in Australia, and General Perry had made scouting forays into Northern Russia. That he knew of, there were five Sky Net segments left.
Taking out the Sky Net segments had been easier than he thought. he was sure that wasn't going to last, for Sky Net knew he had his own terminators now. They also realized he was using Stugs, so he warned all his troops to be on the lookout for new Sky Net machines to counter the Stugs.
John was also looking to improve the weapons they had. On the drawing board was a three emitter plasma canon that fired a solid stream of Plasma bolts. Another was a rifle that while it had a slower firing rate, each bolt was very powerful. With this rifle, each infantry was his own small artillery unit. The research division had Radar stealth down, and were working on a practical temperature stealth system for it's air and ground units. John knew 'good' weapons were not enough. He had to keep Resistance tech better than what Sky Net had to keep winning. The day they had 'good enough' weapons, was the day they would begin loosing. Weapons tech was an edge that the resistance could not afford to loose.
Looking at his world map and pondering these things, John felt a hand slide across the back of his shoulders, eliciting a tingle. He smiled. "Hey, Cammy,"
Putting at arm around him, Cameron said, "Word just came in. General Tina landed at Normandy with 50,000 terminators. Marisa with her own army of 200,000 troops has been moving west from Germany. She's coaxed the largest concentration of Sky Net troops into the middle of France, and is giving them hell. She discovered that if she attacks, then backs off, the Sky Net units will follow. Using this tactic, she can lead them where she wants them to go. When Tina gets there, Derek is sure they can surround and reduce the Sky Net units to nothing within six weeks. If there are any Sky Net H/K's left, they are hiding. We control the air space over Western Europe. We also need more transports to recover the massive amount of terminator bodies and chips we are collecting."
"That's great news. Are Claire and Allison coming with us to Texas this weekend?" he asked.
"They are," Cameron said and kissed his cheek. "Inspecting the new anti-radiation towers down there shouldn't take that long. We'll have plenty of beach time."
"Sun, bikinis and fun," John said with a grin.
A tri-kini for now," Cameron said, correcting him.
"A ... what?" John aside, eyeing her.
"I still have the middle breast, John," she said, casting him an impish look. "It's smaller, but still there. I don't need to contribute to milk production any more, but it will take some time to shrink down to nothing."
John had stopped thinking about it. He'd gotten used to a three-breasted Cameron. She was right, the middle one was shrinking down. Cameron didn't need to contribute any more, there were 2000 female TX's that part of their primary task was milk production. If there were guys who liked very large chested women, that was the place they should go to find a girl. Each cavern system had around 100- 150 TX's females with humongous breasts that produced up to a gallon of milk each. There were even things like cottage cheese, real cheese, butter and creams being made now. Terminator dairies, who would have ever thought?
Some cattle had been found in South America that were low in radiation. In Arizona covered ranches with clean air and grains were in place and slowly growing. Beef was back. John was thinking that they had real hope of recovering from what Sky Net did to the world.
Later in the day, John and Cameron went to see the latest news reel with Claire and Allison. A narrator told of the accomplishments of the resistance as the video showed a line of Stugs exiting the bow of an LST. Another clip showed aircraft taking off on the deck of the Lexington, another of H/K's in flight over land. There was one of carriers loaded down with silver terminators bodies, telling of these terminators heading off to be restored and live a better existence with the resistance. Another showed a line of Stugs with soldiers on top, passing a sign that said, 'Berlin'. The next segment showed tropical shores and told of Hawaii, another showed Cancun in the Yucatan, the Mayan President was making a speech to a large crowd, and explained their neighbor, the Maya to the south, were doing well and rebuilding society. Then the scene shifted to a dam in Australia, and told of rebuilding efforts there. The new underground fish farms were shown.
Allison yelled, "There's Daddy!"
John saw, as did Claire. Claire took in a sharp intake of breath. Daniel was standing way too close to a becoming red head who was wearing very little. They were talking and smiling at each other.
John swore the temperature around Claire just dropped fifteen degrees by the cold stare she cast at the screen.
"Mommy, who's the lady Daddy is with?" Allison asked.
"I. Don't. Know." Claire replied in a stilted, icy tone.
The news reel went on, but Claire was looking very angry. "Excuse me," she said and got up.
Cameron got up too. She recognized jealousy. To Allison, she said, "Stay with John, we'll be right back."
Allison nodded and kept watching the screen.
.
Cameron followed Claire out into the hallway where Claire seemed to lack direction and just wandered around. She walked around in a circle, hugging herself. "What's wrong?" Cameron asked.
Casting Cameron a glare, a teary eyed Claire snapped, "I should have gone with him! ... He should NEVER have gone without me!"
Cameron tipped her head slightly to the side. "Dad did ask you to go with him ..."
"I KNOW!" Claire snapped. "Is that what he's doing with that woman?" she asked, flailing an arm back at the theater doors.
"Dad is probably working with her," Cameron said. "You cannot assume he is doing anything bad."
Claire stopped and frowned at Cameron. "OH! So you don't assume Marisa has any intentions with John? Isn't that why you had her shipped off to Europe?"
"Marisa liked to hug John, and she wanted to take off all her clothes and lie down with him. That is why I had her transferred to Europe," Cameron explained. "Dad was only talking to that woman, and they were dressed."
"Barely!" Claire cried. "I could see her nipples! And those shorts were all but not there!"
"It is hot there," Cameron countered. "Mom, don't assume Dad is doing anything he isn't suppose to be doing."
Clenching a fist, Claire cried, "I should have gone with him!"
"Then go," Cameron said simply. "If you don't want to take Allison, she can stay with John and I."
Claire winced and complained, "Then, I won't see my baby!"
Cameron paused a moment, then said, "Mom? you need to make a choice. Go be with Dad, or stay here. I will ensure Allison's safety if you want to go. You can take Allison with you, but I would not advise it. We do not yet know how much Sky Net is in Australia."
Claire stared at the floor for a few minutes, then said, "No, I'm not going to chase after him. We have a life here. I'm not going anywhere."
Seeing Claire's stricken face, Cameron stepped up and hugged her. Claire hugged her back and burst out in tears. Cameron didn't know what else to do, so she comforted her mother the only way she knew how.
.
One of the things The techs were working on was an airliner. With the risk of Sky Net H/K's, a normal airliner was not adequate. John Connor had ordered that any plane needed to have it's own defenses. At the beginning right after dropping all the bombs, Sky Net had worked hard at destroying every aircraft possible. Some damaged ones were left. O'Hare Airport in Chicago had a ton of airline wreckage. In Oklahoma was another large field of aircraft debris Sky Net had not collected to turn into ingots of aluminum. Here, a couple DC3's and 727's were being put together. Knowing a defenseless aircraft would be an easy target for Sky Net, two plasma canons were mounted on them. Just behind and under the cockpit, a Plasma turret was mounted. The other was just behind the wings in top. In the tail, flares and a chaff system was put in for countermeasures.
A 727 was completed and went through every test the techs could think of, from intense flying tests to shooting down a inert missile shot at it. With the addition of 'safety pods', that could hold five people each, to be ejected if the plane was going down, the first 727 was designated Resistance One, and became John Connor's plane. Besides recliner seats with tables, there was a conference room on the plane and every communication the resistance used. It was also escorted by a pair of H/K's and four Attack planes.
John walked out into the tarmac with Cameron, Claire and Allison to see the large plane and it's escorts waiting for him.
Claire grew a grin and said, "John, It looks like you're Mr. President."
"I'm just a General," john replied.
"THE General," Cameron reminded him.
"You know, John, eventually you are going to have to form a government," Claire told him.
"When the war is over," Cameron said.
"You should start thinking about it long before that," Claire said. "Look at the territory you have already, and who knows how long this war is going to last?"
John let out a huff. He knew Claire was right. At the moment, the only real 'Government' was the Maya. Here he had two entire continents, and what did he have? A military dictatorship. Even if he did need to control the army, that wasn't right. "We do have to figure something out," he agreed.
Getting on the plane, John was surprised at the plush seats with a small table between them. Behind the passenger area was a door to the hallway with a conference room, kitchens and bedrooms beyond.
The stuffed chairs were recliners. John settled down into one. hearing a giggle, he turned to see Allison was in one and spun herself around. Her chair slowed, she reached out, grabbed the table and spun herself around again with a wide grin on her face.
"Allison!" Claire admonished.
"Weee!" Cameron cried as she spun herself around in her chair.
"Weee!" Allison cried as she spun herself around again.
John laughed. Claire shook her head with a grin on her face. At least the girls were having fun.
.
Landing in Corpus Christi, the temperature was up to 63 degrees. John also noted the sky was becoming lighter with only an orange tinge from very high clouds. General Bedell was there to meet them with his engineering staff. They loaded up into a carrier and drove off.
Martin explained, "John, the big problem with the towers was how to keep them stable during bad weather. They are like giant, two layered screens. We have to shut them down when it rains, but the runoff helps clean the filters. We're going out to the prototype one we put up first. There is no way they are going to have an immediate affect in the atmosphere in general, but over time, they will collect any airborne radiation."
John asked, "The problem with the static filters I found was what to do with the radioactive material once we collected it. Have you found a solution?"
"For now, pack it in containers," Martin said with a shrug. "So far, there is no way to neutralize it. The best we can do is try to keep it out of the air."
"Why not launch it into space?" Claire asked.
John and Martin winced, "That would take a lot of rockets that we don't have," Martin explained.
"Yeah," John agreed. "We'd need something like anti-gravity to eject the radioactive containers. Something reusable and not expensive to operate."
"John, a working theory on anti-gravity was being developed by a few colleges," Cameron said. "Possibly there is research we can find and study."
"It's worth a shot," John told her.
"Actually," the man with thick black rimmed glasses said, "Gravity, for the layman's purposes, is like static electricity in that is an attractive force based on mass. It follows most of the rules of electromagnetism, but not all."
Bedell looked at him and said, "This is Jerold Telsa, one of my engineers."
Cameron tipped her head slightly and said, "There has never been any proof on what creates gravity, or why it exists."
"True," Jerold agreed. He pushed his glasses up on his nose and added, "That is why any attempt to create a device that is truly anti-gravity cannot be made. What can be made is a device that has the capability to defeat gravity. Rocket engines can do that, but require a massive amount of explosive chemicals set to burn at a pre-determined rate, or mixing highly flammable gasses in the correct mixture. To use a device that does not require a large, heavy rocket, requires the vehicle being propelled to trick gravity into not recognizing the vehicle is there. To bend gravitational forces around the vehicle. That will require a shift in the space-time continuum."
"Huh?" John asked.
Jerold said, "Think of it as stealth to gravity. That was the best theory I knew of. There was talk about using anti-matter, or negative matter but anti-matter also has gravity, and it also has a very strong electromagnetic attraction to positive matter, which would force the two together before they would annihilate each other upon contact in a very energetic event. "
"They would explode," Cameron stated.
"On a sub atomic level, every bit of both atoms would become nothing but pure energy," Jerold explained.
"A nuclear blast," John said, understanding.
Jerold winced and said, " A nuclear blast like you are referring to is the energy from neutrons from one atom, hitting another atom to break it apart. There is much energy released, but there is also fallout from the atoms that only get knocked apart, not completely destroyed. An anti-matter blast would consume both atoms completely, turning both into pure energy. The blast would be much, much bigger."
"How much bigger?" John asked.
"Estimated? A square millimeter of matter and antimatter combining to release all their energy would be roughly ten megatons of TNT."
"Holy shit," Martin said weakly. "From one tiny drop of antimatter?"
"Yes, that is why there is no detectable anti matter in our universe. It was destroyed long ago, or is too far away to react with matter," Jerold explained.
John shook his head to clear it and said, "OK, no messing with anti-matter. Back to the question of getting rid of radioactive material. I know contamination is electrically charged. Isn't there a way to neutralize it?"
"Radiation is decay, it will neutralizer itself in a few million years," Jerold said.
"How about a little faster than that?" John asked.
"No."
Letting out a huff, John said, "Then we collect as much as we can, and figure out what to do with it later." Thinking of a more practical way to not let any more radiation into the ground that that was already there, John asked, "For these towers, how about putting them into a big pipe or something to make sure water doesn't wash the contamination out of them?"
"Might as well use them for large air cleaners for cities then," Martin said with a snort.
John looked at him. He smiled and said, "General, I do think that is a good idea. We can get people out from underground."
"You mean like domed cities?"
"Sure, why not? You already have air cleaners for your buildings, don't you?"
Martin nodded and said, " We do. You're just talking more and bigger air cleaners to do entire city blocks."
"Yup," John agreed, "Make a city that cleans the air instead of polluting it. Might take many, many years, but radiation in the planetary air will slowly be reduced."
"It's a start," Martin agreed.
.
John was happy about the idea of getting people back up to ground level, especially now that the heavy clouds were dissipating and sunshine was returning to the world. In the few days they were in Texas, was very pleased with her happy John. Wake up in the morning, sex, breakfast with John, Claire and Allison, check on the status of things. Sex, lunch, an afternoon at the beach with plenty of sun block playing and fondling. A shower to rinse off / playing in the shower, making out, dinner, sex, falling asleep naked and satisfied.
Cameron wished John was happier all the time. It was like they were a new couple again. John couldn't seem to stop touching her and kissing her. It was like John did completely forgot about his troubles. Yippee for a happy John!
Too soon, they had to return to Cheyenne Mountain. Cameron noted that as soon as they landed on the airfield with snow banks on either side, John's perpetual frown returned. He was no longer just her husband, but once again, the Leader of the resistance with humanity's survival and welfare on his shoulders.
Cuddled in bed back in their quarters, Cameron noted John held her tight as always, but his face showed he was thinking about something other than the here and now.
"You didn't get bad news, did you?' Cameron asked, to prompt a discussion.
"No," John said in a musing tone. "Derek said they are reducing Sky Net units, another Sky Net hasn't popped up and sent in any more. In fact, some to the south have fled back along the Mediterranean coast. I bet another Sky Net is getting ready in the east to come attack him this time."
"Right now, the Sky Net Segments only know that we are in Europe, no where else?" Cameron asked.
"Yeah, John Henry had pretty much confirmed that," John agreed. "That means we make a move towards it there again, there's going to be a huge army waiting for us."
Cameron rubbed John's shoulder and asked, "Then don't do what Sky Net expects. Where do you think Sky Net would least expect you to attack it?"
John gave a weak shrug, "Right now? Probably friggin Siberia."
"Or maybe strikes at the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia, one in Hokkaido in Japan then a Chinese port. Go in, destroy enough things so Sky Net is alerted, then move on. Sky Net will see the threat and rush units to deal with the threat. Then you can make a real attack someplace else," Cameron suggested.
John grinned and said, "Maybe enough strikes all over to make all the Sky Net segments chatter away and zero in on ..." He then stopped sat to then plunged down on Cameron and gave her a long kiss. Popping up he said, Cam, you're absolutely right!" He vaulted out of bed.
Cameron, who'd been waiting for more kisses asked, "John? Where are you going?"
John grabbed Cameron's hand and pulled her up. "Come on! Help me plan this out, I bet we can take down two or three more Sky Net segments before they know what hit them!"
.
In the past months, General Jacobson had the most small-attack forces that operated in three to five Stugs groups with about 20 troops accompanying them. The infantry troops did have mortars and two inch missiles that had plasma forming explosive tips that could take out H/K tanks. These teams were experts in guerrilla warfare. They were also lazing about in Brazil. John looked at the numbers of troops Jacobson had, and figured he could spare around 20,000 easily. At the moment, he was building up port facilities and making boats and restoring farming here and there. Jacobson needed his support troops worse than combat troops.
John then contacted Catherine Weaver with his plan. The idea was to make Sky Net think the Far East was being attacked in force along the coast. She agreed, for that would also draw any Sky Net attention away from Australia. General Perry got this job to assign the troops coming to him, and some of his to go on these attacks from subs and ships. If he could make significant gains, fine. His main job was to make Sky Net think they were getting mobbed.
.
In Europe Tina was making progress down through France. Her all terminator army was wrecking Sky Net units they came across. First a picket line would advance and shoot into Sky net troops, then retreat. Seeing enemy, the Sky Net terminators would moved into battle and chase the retreating troops. Once her troops pulled them back, Stugs came from the sides, planes from the air and the troops in front would turn and attack in earnest. She swallowed up chunk after chunk of terminators and a few H/K tanks that she met, taking few losses to herself. Making it down to the beginning of the Pyrenees, she had her terminators use the same under water route she used to get around the mountain pass on the coast. On both sides of the mountains, Tina advanced, searching for more Sky Net units.
In France and the mid countries, Marisa swept south, eating up terminators as she went, sending more and more back for repair and reeducation. Talking with Derek, she and Tina had defeated 900,000 terminators and captured two more factories. She also noted Sky Net terminators moving south. Tina had noted this, and so had the picket line in Greece.
Sky Net units were in retreat. it was suspected before, but now there was solid proof. The narrow passable land between France and Italy was one place they could be stopped. The eastern border of Italy was the other narrow place to prevent them from getting away. Marisa went for the Western Border, Derek had his troops race to the Eastern border. They found out Sky Net in Turkey was not destroyed. One in Kursk was also in operation. Derek also got information it was drawing forces from North Africa as well to come defend itself. Apparently, it had learned pushing all it's troops far from itself in a vain attempt to engage John Connor's forces was not working out well.
Marisa gathered her troops and sped for the rea where southern France met Italy. Marisa found the routes Sky Net units were using to go east, and in a couple battles, cut them off. Then using rivers and lakes, as well as mountains as much as possible, she formed a flexible line to meet the oncoming Sky Net units. As smashed Sky Net units piled up on roads and in passes, the ones behind them spread out to get by. Being their primary mission was to move on, thousands felt to traps of terminators springing up to their sides and Stugs crashing through them.
Sky Net Units didn't know what surrender was. They kept coming and trying to break through places where they were walking over terminator bodies so thick, no ground was seen in sight. Facing TX's who shot two shots from undercover for every shot standing Sky Net terminators took, and getting rammed into and pounded by the Stugs, valleys began to fill with metal and passes were blocked from the carnage.
As the days went by, Tina came closer to the rear of the Sky Net mass, still coaxing some units back to slaughter them, before driving forward enough to get the attention of more. Marisa's line had spread out to a thirty mile front. Some places only a Stug commanded fifty yards of front by itself, or a pair of TX's were hunkered down in their protective debris to make side nothing got across the bridge or through the water.
A week from beginning the long days and nights of battle, Marisa, saw a small vehicle climb onto the other end of the bridge. It was one of Tina's Stugs. She and Tina had crushed the huge Sky Net army between them. She was so happy, she hugged herself and pretended she was hugging John. It now became a gigantic cleanup operation to collect chips and terminator bodies. Besides the 32000 of their own terminators that were waiting for repair, many of the 1.5 million Sky Net Terminators they had disabled were shipped back to North America for education and repair.
.
Daniel discovered why the people in Australia seemed to have done better than many other places. On the first day they heard John Connor's warning, they listened. Some resistance members from the future had been spreading word about Sky Net and John Connor. People listened. Better yet, the Australian Government had listened and had teams made to search for proof of his 'Sky Net'. Upon finding it, servers were shut down. Many businesses and agencies became irate when government men came in and opened the bulldog to cut power to their servers. Server memory was scrutinized before it was allowed back in service.
Upon John Connor's warning, all servers were ordered shut down. The bombs still hit, but Sky Net had no control over the 'intelligent' H/K drones. The fight of Sky Net units VS the Australian Military was brutal, and ended up destroying both sides. The civilian population picked up the military weapons and finished off most of the Sky Net remains. The Aussies won. They also lost most of their remaining male population.
"So you see, mate," Astrid explained as she sat on the couch by Daniel, "There's few of us left, and we're mostly women. The ratio right now is around 15 to 1. We also seem to have had plenty of miscarriages and a high infant mortality rate. Unless we can turn it around, we're doomed. The only way to turn it around is to have women who can successfully have a baby, do it. Otherwise, we're going extinct, love."
"You need immigrants," Daniel said. He then realized, "Then again, there's not many people left, period."
"You got it, love."
Daniel cringed and said, "Still, it doesn't seem right. I mean ..."
Astrid elbowed him and asked, "Are you still on your morals kick? Let me ask you this. Is it moral to let people die out when you can do something about it?"
Daniel bit his lip. "No, I suppose not."
Astrid eyed him. After a moment she asked, "Well?"
"I have to get used to the idea," he offered. "On the bright side, now that you've gotten some nanites in you, you chances of carrying a healthy baby are greatly improved."
"Aye, and we should take advantage of that," Astrid agreed, focusing on him.
Part of Daniel was cursing himself for even thinking abut it. The other part was kicking him for not readily agreeing. Here was a pretty red head with a nice body all but begging him for sex - with no attachments. He was a fool to even think about not jumping in bed with her. Before he meant to, he asked, "Can I stay here tonight?"
Astrid grew a big smile. "Aye, Love. I'll be glad to have ya."
.
Fred's company headed out with two tool and equipment trucks and a stug towing a trailer with three bridge pieces. The bridge over a deeply cut stream needed to be replaced. They travelled a few hours to find that just past a decent sized down, the bridge just past the town was out. Well, blown up. Some Aussie women were working at clearing the debris. Seeing his company drive up and get out, the women stopped working and watched them. One thrust her fist in the air and cried, "Yes!"
Lt. Pete Davis waved to the women and said, "We're here to help you ladies out. We'll get this bridge up in no time."
Fred didn't pay attention to the LT. as women crowded around him. He unhooked the trailer from the Stug. Once the Stug got out of the way, he turned the trailer around and set the stabilizing legs. He and a few others began pulled the bridge sections off. Gloria and another human took measurements and drove stakes into the ground on the side of the road on this side where the bridge was to begin.
"We need all three segments!" Gloria called to Fred and his crew.
They laid out the segments end to end and bolted them together. Gloria's group put the bulldozer blade on the Stug, and guided the driver to scrape down the road where the bridge was going to be placed. The steepness of the banks prevented getting the Stug to the other side. Grabbing picks and shovels, Fred's group and a few of Gloria's forded the stream and made measurements, then dug out the other side.
In a short time, ropes were tied to the bridge segments and thrown over to Fred's group. They pulled as the Stug pushed on the put together segments. The bridge spanned the stream. Gloria's group worked at smoothing the end of the bridge to the road surface. Fred's group drove deep rods into the ground to anchor the bridge in place, and another group did the 'finishing touches' such as rolling out the concrete covering for the road surface. The wire and dry mix was laid down over the metal deck, then water was sprinkled on. In two hours, the roadbed would be hard and dry. Touchup paint was used to cover the places where paint had been scraped on the metal parts of the bridge while putting it together.
While putting their tools away, Fred noted Lt. Davis, and none of the human men were present any longer. They were packing up to go get their next assignment, and half his Company were missing. Curious, Fred looked around. Many of the women who'd been here were no longer around either. He did see one smiling as she approached him.
"Hey, Mate, want to try to make a baby?" she asked with a wide grin.
"I cannot cause a pregnancy," Fred replied.
"You been snipped?" she asked.
"Negative. While I can have sex, I am not human and do not have the sperm cells that cause pregnancy." Fred explained.
The woman's face fell. "Damn," she grumbled and wandered off.
Fred had not been aware that was part of their task while they were here. He was making sure the tool truck was set to go and heard the whine of a plasma shot from the west. He immediately turned and scanned in that direction. A half mile away to the west, another plasma shot flashed by the road. three silver terminators were coming. On the side of the road, no longer hidden by brush were two entangled bodies burning with the brush.
"Sky Net!" Fred yelled and brought out his Plasma canons. The stug crew saw and aimed their plasma canon. Fred shot first, just ahead of the Stug. Between his shots and the Stug's, the silver terminators fell in melted pieces.
"Fred, guard the area, we're going to look for more!" the Stug commander yelled from his hatch.
"I will!" Fred called back. The stug ran down the road. He then called out, "Fritz, Frank, Freida! we guard the area!"
The other TX's ran to the edges of the work area and kept watch. Humans piled out of a few buildings and out from low areas of ground, quickly putting their clothes together.
"Gloria?" Fred asked.
"Here!" Gloria said, running towards him with her plasma rifle.
"Have you seen Lt. Davis?" Fred asked.
"No."
"Do a personnel count, see who we're missing. Two people got burned to by the Sky Net terminators," Fred told her.
The Stug ran out a mile and searched the area. No other Sky Net units were found. The bodies tangled on the ground that were nothing but blackened bone and ash were Lt. Davis and a local woman. The Stug Commander was not the officer in charge since Lt. Davis was incinerated. When the Stug was back, they called in the incident and asked for orders. They were to hold and guard the bridge and the town until a combat force arrived.
Sticking his head up out of his hatch again, the Stug commander said, "Listen up everyone! Thirty miles to the south, another company was attacked by four Sky Net terminators. More attacks are expected. Ensign Canton, set up defensive positions we will be out there in the brush on that small rise. Plan on relief forces arriving in 4 hours at the latest."
Fred saluted him. "Understood." He then organized the company into watches, and insisted their humans get all their clothes back on. He checked everyone to be sure they had their gear and a plasma rifles before they took up their positions in the fox holes they were digging. Gloria stayed with Fred in a depression they dug out near the road. Gloria looked scared, but held herself together. Some of the women helping them wanted to help make the defensive line, but Fred insisted that at least stay back in the eastern side of the stream.
Two hours later, ground attack planes flew overhead, followed by a line of Stugs carrying soldiers. The Captain of the unit informed Fred they could get back to what they were doing. The line of Stugs kept moving west.
Calling back to HQ, Fred found he was the LT. now. The Aussie women with them also volunteered to stay with the Company. Their, or now rather Fred's Combat Construction Company had lost one, and gained twelve. The twelve were untrained, but could help with mundane tasks like setups, cooking, laundry and standing watch.
By nightfall, HQ ordered in the morning they were to move west and meet a combat unit in the next town that needed the road cleared and another bridge constructed. Their Stug went back to collect more bridging sections.
Before getting into her tent, Gloria asked, "Fred, we have a combat unit in front of us now, so no more SKy Net units are going to stumble upon us, right?"
"Most likely not. Get some rest, Gloria," Fred told her.