"We've got to go." Derrick said. "We can still make it out of the ramp entrance and blow the dam to cover our tracks. It'll be a big mess but it'll keep them occupied while hustle back to San Diego."
He looked around the room for support. He didn't expect any from the machines, not even Gabriel. Connor was another story; Derrick still hadn't figured him out but he knew he wouldn't leave. They had taken him this far, but with an army outside they had no choice. The real surprise for Derrick was his own brother.
"We ain't goin' anywhere." He said.
"I'm sorry, were you listening to what she said? Cause I heard there is an army of endos marching up the valley. We can't hold off an army Kyle. How many can we hold off? Hundreds? Thousands? We. Have. To. Go." Derrick told him in his best big brother tone.
"Go where Derrick? Back to San Diego? What the hell for? Wait for them to turn these guys around? They'll be on our doorstep in two hours!" Kyle raised his voice, something he rarely did with Derrick.
"We go back there and we have a chance, we stay here and we have none."
"Derrick, this is our chance. Don't you get it? Haven't you been outside lately? The war is over. This is the only way -"
"You don't know that Kyle so don't fucking get into things you don't have your head around." Derricks tone was venomous.
James watched the brothers go at it. They argued occasionally of course as brothers in arms sometimes would. It got their frustrations out. Sometimes he wished he had someone to let loose on, someone who wouldn't hate him for it later. The brothers were lucky.
"You know what? You're right, I'm sorry. I guess I only speak for myself. I'm staying, you can go."
The elder brother could only scowl at him. "I can't believe this. We're just going to stay here and hold the line? It's fucking suicide."
"Are you afraid Derrick?" Kyle asked.
Derrick didn't hesitate as he brought his fist around. It wasn't a half hearted jab or a playful punch. His left fist crashed into Kyle's jaw, sending him into an arc. Alison rushed to his side, seemingly more angry than worried. She looked up at Derrick with what John thought was pure contempt.
Kyle rubbed his jaw, leaning back on one arm. He smiled broadly up at his brother. "You got that out of your system asshole? Ready to play ball?" Kyle spat out a wad of blood and what he was sure was a chip off one of his teeth before getting to his feet. "Or you want to have another go? I gave you a free shot old man."
James stepped forward before there could be any more violence. "That's quite enough, unless someone wants to take it outside. We can wait in here." He offered.
The Reese brothers seemed to have purged whatever rebellion was in their system. Alison didn't look so convinced and she was almost relieved when Derrick stepped away in a huff, mumbling something about having to check his stock of ammunition.
That left the rest of them in a somewhat uncomfortable silence. Kyle thought about apologizing for his brother but decided to leave it alone. The humans in the room seemed to have taken an intense interest in various features of the geology while the machines stood by as if it was all just another subroutine run by their organic companions.
"John Henry, how long until you're ready to go?" James asked as soon as Derrick was out of earshot.
"Once the aperture is complete installing it will be short work. However, configuring the machine is delicate work. It must be protected."
"I figured that much." The General sighed. "We'll give you as long as we can." He looked at the endoskeletons gathered around their leader and motioned towards them. "We could use some help, if you're willing."
They said nothing.
"You wish for them to assist you in the defense of our position?" John Henry asked.
James nodded, laughing a little bit. "That's the idea."
"They will be at your disposal. I will require Three to complete the fabrication and work with me on the TDE. One, Two and Four will be under your direct control." He looked at his troop. "Go with the General."
James went to a cluttered worktable and brushed off the various bits and pieces. There was a grease pen nearby and he used it to outline the features of the dam he was familiar with.
"Okay, I don't have the lay of the land completely memorized but I think it goes something like this." He began to draw.
The original construction of the El Captain dam was dissected into three major sections. The first was the maintenance area where they had come in. It was to the north and consisted of a roughly 'E' shaped hallway that led into several rooms on what he remembered to be three different levels. That section was joined to the generation section via a long parallel hallway that ran across the base of the dam, from one end to the other. The generation section held the power plant as well as the maintenance pits where the heavy machinery was serviced on site. Behind and below that was the foundation level which was the only section directly connected to the TDE chamber.
James attempted to draw this out in a rough sort of way but stopped halfway through. He was about to give up on the idea of a visual layout when one of the endoskeletons made an offer.
"General, I understand the physical layout of the dam in complete detail. I can produce a map if you wish." One held out his metal palm, open.
"Go for it."
One began to draw the dam with a precision that could only have come from the hand of a machine. Every major room, ever duct, every shaft and major feature of the dam was in his neural network. In moments he had it printed out on the tabletop for all to see. He placed a small 'X' at the base of the dam, somewhere near the foundation level.
"This map is to scale. We are here."
John marveled at the level of detail. He could see how their defense might break down in the narrow hallways. The advancing terminators would be forced to engage one or two at a time, protecting their flanks. On the other side of this, getting cut off meant certain death. The dam was filled with rat holes and dead ends where someone could get lost, get corned and get terminated.
He noticed the opening on the turbine hangar. This was a large structure on the south side of the dam. Years ago this was where huge cranes would lift the turbines from their housing and deposit them for maintenance. The room was big - if the scale was right he guessed it would be about fifteen or twenty meters high. The south hallway led in from there and joined the parallel hallway. Any machines entering from that direction would have an almost straight shot to the foundation level.
"That hangar is enormous. It'll be hard to defend." Kyle said.
"I have an idea." John said. "The Rook. How big is that bay?"
"Sixteen meters high, two and fifty long." One said.
"Okay, then that works. Park the Rook at the far end and hold them off as long as we can." He drummed his fingers on the table, thinking about their hardware, their timetable, coming up with strategies that seemed impossible in an impossible situation.
One cocked his head to one side. "That may be the best way to utilize the Rook. With its slow speed and single large cannon it will be ineffective against large groups of mobile endoskeletons." He turned to John Henry. "May I have the control for the Rook?"
John Henry produced what looked like a television remote control from his pocket. "Of course."
"That still leaves one entrance. The north side is more narrow but they'll come in just the same. What do you think about this?" John traced his finger along the hallway, outlining his idea. "We can mine the hallway, set some detonators every few meters. It might slow them down."
James had his chin on his hand. "Well, it may slow them down but those claymores won't do much unless they're standing right on top of them. Combine that with the fact that we only have what, a half dozen?" He looked at Gabriel for a yes or no.
"Six mines. There is another option." Gabriel placed his hand on the table. "Blow the dam, as Derrick suggested."
This caught many of them off guard, including James.
"Gabriel, the idea is to survive the encounter, not become part of the landscape."
"General, allow me to explain." He reached down to his feet and pulled up his pack, dumping the contents on the table. "We have two trash packs. We should plant them here." He pointed to the room farthest to the east in the maintenance area nearest the water-wall in the dam. "This room has a wall that is approximately three feet thick, reinforced concrete. These should be able to break through the structure."
The General shook his head. "That would flood the north hallway for sure if you could do that, but what about everywhere else? Gabriel, we're at the bottom of the dam."
"The flooding would be most severe at the north end of the structure. These rooms..." He pointed out the environmental control room, the storage area and a what seemed to be a common area "would be flooded, along with the north hallway. I think this would effectively block that entrance. The water pressure would be significantly reduced by the time it reaches us. Flooding in the foundation level will occur but most of the water would be diverted outside."
The General closed his eyes, thinking for a moment. "This is a one way mission. Whoever goes probably isn't coming back."
"The odds are stacked against us General. This provides us with a way to mitigate one point of entry into the dam. If you allow, I will carry this out myself."
"James, what we need most is time. I agree with Gabriel." Catherine said.
James hated to lose a man a second time, and like any good commander he didn't relish the idea of sending one of his men on a one way mission. In this case Catherine was right - what happened after the TDE was activated was academic. Maybe nothing happened and they all die right there. Maybe time rewinds and they find themselves back where they started, who the hell knows? All he understood was that they had to keep the TDE chamber safe until John Henry and John Connor were safely back in 2009.
"Alright, you can go. I hate to give you up for the firefight but this has merit."
"Thank you." Gabriel said. There was no sign of trepidation on his face, no indication that he would hesitate to detonate the explosives if he was standing right on top of them.
"We still have to worry about the hallways. What are we going to do around these intersections?" John said.
"I have a few ideas about that." Catherine said.
(*****)
"Do you still intend to carry out your plan?" Gabriel asked him.
John stood over the feminine endoskeleton on the table. This would be Cameron as soon as she was put back together. He thought she looked beautiful in a way just like this, but that didn't change the fact that she needed skin to travel back through time.
"More than ever." He said.
"Have you given any thought to what she'll do when she wakes up?"
"A little. Look, I've thought it over. I can do this, I just need time." He sounded frustrated, as if he had convinced himself of this already and didn't want to have someone picking over his decision.
"Time is something you seem to have enough of. You do have a time machine, after all."
They were alone in the clean room. Gabriel was fully functional again, having been run through the bio-replicator. John thought he looked just the same as he did when he met him a few days ago.
"What about you? I just got you put back together and now you're going to get yourself blown to hell again."
Gabriel smiled. "I may survive. The important thing is that you live John, for everyone's sake."
"Will those things really go through the wall?" He motioned to the packs Gabriel was carrying.
"The trash pack is a high-yield shaped charge. It will vaporize the concrete, I am confident of this."
"I suppose I don't have to tell you I changed your programming while you were off-line."
"I hadn't noticed." Gabriel said, flatly.
John motioned with his hand. "It's a precaution, in case things go completely to hell. It only becomes a primary directive when the General -"
"I am aware John, thank you for the note. You need help with Cameron, do you not?"
"I do. Let's get this done."
The bio-replicator was a massive, clam shaped machine lit by a green aura. It took John a few hours to figure out how it worked the first time, but once he had deciphered a few of the pictographs on the control surfaces operation was simple. Cameron's physical profile was still on her chip. John hesitated as he slipped the CPU into the machine.
Soon.
The machine came to life and John could see the data transfer begin. It was quick - compared to the rest of the data on the chip her physical profile was simple. He probably could have programmed it from memory.
Once Gabriel had the body in the replicator John began the sequence. It had been quick with Gabriel, most of his skin was still in one piece. John wasn't sure how long a complete regeneration might take. There was a timer on the headboard.
32:00 MINUTES
Once the clam shell closed it began to count down. John thought it was like watching water boil, so he tried to busy himself with other things. There were preparations to be made before they could make the jump - he had to make sure the TDE would stay in one piece and that meant a defense. The others were off busying themselves with the handiwork of holding off a metal army, but John felt a knot grow in his stomach.
"Gabriel, can I ask you something?"
"Of course."
John tried to find the articulation he was looking for. "Would SkyNET send a thousand endoskeletons to come after seven people?"
"No." He answered.
Johns shoulders dropped a little. "I wonder if it knows what's happening here. Seems like an awful lot of trouble to go to for one band of resistance fighters."
"It's hard to say what SkyNET thinks John. Its mind is large and complex but not perfect, as it sees itself. It isn't above making vain choices. Perhaps that is what makes it so dangerous." Gabriel said.
The machine gave a departing nod and then turned to leave. He stopped short of the door in mid stride. "May I ask you something John?"
"Shoot."
"Why are you doing this?"
John gave a wry smile and answered the only way he knew how. "Fate has asked a lot of me. This is what I ask in return."
Gabriel listened over his shoulder. "I see."
If he gave the answer any deeper thought he didn't indicate it and stepped out of sight.
(*****)
The Rook settled at the far end of the turbine hangar and hid in the shadows, waiting. One had piloted the vehicle into position via remote, settling the rook down so the barrel could be pointed roughly at the ground like a scorpions tail. He and Four waited in the crane operators chair with a clear view down into the bay. One could see through the Rooks primitive optical sensors and he could read its condition screen on his HUD.
Fifteen rounds in the magazine, one in the chamber. He brushed his metal finger over the trigger and sighted in on the far door and watched for movement. Below him, the door back into the dam had been welded shut.
Kyle pulled up from his crouch, running his fingers along his handiwork. "I feel kinda bad about this." He pulled on the handle just to be sure the job was sound. It held fast.
"Don't. This is what they were made for. And don't write them off, they may surprise you Mister Reese." Catherine tapped on the door. "This won't hold them long."
Kyle motioned down the hallway. "We're real close to the generator room, what if they make it in there? If they blow those then we're in some real trouble."
Catherine nodded. "Yes, we are. We can only hope my gamble pays off."
Kyle shook his head. "I sure hope you know what you're doing with that."
"I've given it a good deal of thought. Come on, we've still got a few more doors."
They came to the next steel door down a few meters from the last. Before Kyle welded it shut, Catherine carefully looped a strand of wire around the uppermost hinge, tying it to one of the claymores.
As soon as she was finished Kyle made a few welds to the door, effectively sealing it to its frame. Anyone who wanted in to this particular closet would have to rip the door off its hinges, and that meant a slab of metal to the face. He chortled a little as he finished up the last weld.
"You find something funny about this?"
"I just wish I could be here to see it. You sure they'll go for this?"
"We machines are thorough Kyle, they'll check every last room believe me." She hoisted the acetylene tanks over her shoulder and motioned for him to follow.
They made their way down the hallway, one door after another. Every entrance in the dam would be sealed off, and some of them would have special surprises behind them. Kyle thought it was kind of like playing a game of roulette. They had wired quite a few winning doors, not just with claymores but with the flashbangs and thermite incendiaries as well. Once things got going the south hallway would become very unfriendly.
(*****)
Derrick sulked just long enough to feel bad about the act itself. He didn't feel bad about punching Kyle in the face, at least not any more. Punching your brother was just something that happened, occasionally. That wasn't what bothered him, Kyle could stand up for himself. He wished Alison hadn't given him the dead eye. She had such a pretty face but she could be damned mean sometimes. Derrick thought about finding her and apologizing but thought it was probably too soon.
"Better do it quick or you won't get a chance." He said to himself. That alone wasn't motivation. It would have to wait.
He drew in a deep breath. He wouldn't get another chance.
"Fuck."
He wandered back to where everyone else would be to find her and make amends. He'd talk to Kyle too, shit, he'd tell everyone...
No, he wouldn't go that far. The metal didn't need to hear him cop to making an ass out of himself. The thought wormed around in his insides, settling in his stomach like a sick pill. He was only human, after all.
Derrick found Alison with John and wasn't surprised. They were in the clean room - a place that Derrick didn't care for at all. This place reminded him of hospitals and morgues and places people went to die. He could feel the metal around him and it made his skin crawl. How could this boy work with them like that?
"Did you come here for something?" Alison asked.
"Have you seen Kyle around anywhere?" He still wasn't sure if he wanted to do this.
"He went off with Weaver."
Derrick slumped. "Why? Why didn't she take John instead?"
John pretended not to hear what was going on between them, fixing his eyes on the countdown timer. It read just over twenty minutes.
"She needed someone who could handle a torch welder, they're going to set a bunch of mines and traps along the south hallway to slow the machines down."
Derrick nodded. "Alright, well I just wanted to see him."
Alison turned her face towards him. "What for?"
"Look, I'm sorry alright? It's just a lot to take in, you know? This whole thing is a little out of this world, I guess I'm just not sure what's going on anymore." He trailed off.
She felt sorry for him but he made her so angry sometimes. The way he talked to Kyle and the way he treated other people was a god damned shame. Derrick had let it happen to himself a little bit at a time. She'd known him quite a while. He'd been a better man once.
"I know it isn't easy but we're just trying to make the best of it Derrick. Can't you see how important it is? Can't you see past the end of your rifle for a change? I swear to god sometimes I think you're off on your own, fighting this war all by yourself."
It took a moment for her words to sink in but when they did Derrick didn't have a response. He waved her off, knowing deep down that she was right and hating himself for it.
"Well if you see Kyle, tell him I was looking for him." He said.
Alison nodded slightly. "I will."
She watched him walk away and felt her own kind of hurt, and as he vanished from her sight the last thought that crossed her mind was that those may have been the last words she'd speak to Derrick Reese.
She was correct.
Derrick found Gabriel not far away. He had the two trash packs lashed together into one big bomb, tied to a single radio detonator. There were wires and rope linking the two packs and on one side there was a failsafe switch with a tiny battery tied into it.
"What's all this?" He asked.
Gabriel didn't look up. "I plan to detonate this against the wet wall in the northern end of the dam and floor pat of the structure. This will slow the machines assault into the base."
Derrick looked the device over. The wiring was perfect, tied tightly down, the work of a machine.
"Need help?"
"No, this will be a one way mission. I will carry it out alone."
"Yeah I got that." Derrick said. "But if it's that important it's better to have two people as opposed to one."
Gabriel finished synching the last of the rope. "When the charge goes off the area will be instantly flooded. I think you know what that means."
"Yeah, anyone in there bites the big one."
"That seems likely."
"Well, like I said, no one here is gonna live forever. I'll go with you."
"You should inform the General, though I am certain that he will not allow you to destroy yourself in a suicide mission."
"What, so he just sends you? Like you'll fare any better."
"I don't have to breathe."
"Look, I'm coming with you. Don't tell the General...I'll take care of it. Just wait for me alright?"
Gabriel seemed to give this some thought. Derrick Reese had a certain patent on risky behavior - this was only a manifestation of his psychology which suggested at least mild depression and self destruction. Gabriel knew all of this because his database told him so but he also knew that Derrick was asking him as something other than a machine.
"Very well, I will wait for you until the General gives the order to move. We have to make it to the North entrance before the machines breach the dam or we will be cut off."
"Hey no problem, I'll be right there."