Terminator: Return of the Fallen

Part XXXXV

December 31, 2009, the end of the decade. I have lived in the past for nearly a year, and it has been the happiest year of my life. I have a girlfriend, a child who loves me like a father, and a young woman that loves me like a brother. Yet at any moment, it could all come crashing down in a nuclear fireball. Judgment Day could be right around the corner, and we will not know it until it is too late.

This afternoon, John discovered an unusual energy signature. Cameron, Sarah, and I went out to investigate. The source of the energy signature was a building in the middle of nowhere. As the first one out of the car, I smashed down the door and entered the building. Once I was sure that it was safe, I signalled for Cameron and Sarah to join me.

"Well?"

"There's nothing here. No equipment, no power source, nothing to suggest an energy signature. Maybe John was wrong this time". Sarah actually looks insulted by my remark.

"I trust my son. If he said there was an energy signature here, then there was an energy signature here. Maybe they moved it".

"Sarah, I did not mean any disrespect. I'm just saying.....everyone makes mistakes, even John Connor".

"Have you ever made a mistake?"

"Of course I have. After all, I'm only human. Er.....I was only human". Sarah starts to laugh, which eases the tension in the room. We still have to solve the mystery of the missing energy signature. Suddenly, I notice Cameron cocking her head like a confused cat.

"Do you hear something beeping?" I have to really focus to hear it, but I do.

"Yeah, I do. Stay here with Sarah, I'll check it out".

"Why can't I go with you?"

"Because my armour is stronger than yours. Besides, we can't leave Sarah alone, can we?" Sarah rolls her eyes.

"I'm a big girl; I can take care of myself".

"Isn't that how you keep getting kidnapped?" This is true, but it could also get me shot. She looks me straight in the eye; it amazes me how intimidating she is. I am virtually indestructible and she can still scare the hell out of me.

"How many times do you feel like being blown up?"

"I retract my question".

"Good man....machine...whatever you are".

I just laugh it off and head towards the sound of the beeping. It seems to be coming from behind a wall. I punch through the wall and begin to rip out the bricks. Sure enough, I find a timing mechanism hidden behind the bricks. The device is counting down, and the countdown is almost up. Crap! A bomb!

"EVERYONE OUT, NOW!"

Sarah and Cameron run out of the building, with me far behind them. I run as fast as I can towards the exit. Sarah and Cameron have already reached the car; they are just waiting for me to catch up. I am just about to reach the exit, when I am overtaken by an extremely bright light. I think: this is it. I am dead, AGAIN! The next thing I know, I am standing naked in the middle of the desert. There is no sign of Sarah or Cameron. What the hell happened?

Without warning, three Hunter Killers fly over a sand dune and surround me. I am unarmed; there is nothing I can do to these flying killing machines. Four Moto-Terminators drive around the dune and surround me as well. At this particular moment, I would trade anything for a railgun. This is probably it; I am going to die.

"What are you waiting for? End this".

I expect a barrage of missiles and plasma bursts to annihilate me. Instead, two T-700s leap off of a Hunter Killer and walk towards me. Great, now I'm a prisoner. Running is not an option, not with those HKs and Moto-Terminators surrounding me. I might as well play along, and figure out what the hell happened later.

As I am loaded into a Hunter Killer by the two T-700s, I start thinking about Sarah. The last time I saw her, I was teasing her about her constantly being kidnapped. I wonder what she would say if she saw me now: naked, guarded, and being taken away to God only knows where. Or when, for that matter. If they sent T-700s after me instead of T-600s, then this is probably after 2018. Assuming, of course, that the timeline has not been altered. Man, I hate time travel.

After my trip in the Hunter Killer, I am lead into a room with a table and a few chairs. This looks like an interrogation room. I wonder how you interrogate a Terminator. Or, do they even know that I am a Terminator. This should be interesting. A T-700 walks into the room. I wonder if I can twist its head off?

"What is your name?" What do you know? They can talk.

"None of your business, metal man". It does not like my response, and burns me with a laser. It hurts like hell, but I can handle it.

"What is your name?"

"Kiss my ass". It turns the laser on again, this time at a higher setting. I wonder if this is what Allison and the Reese brothers went through when they were captured by SkyNet. No matter what happens, I will not tell this metal mother fucker anything.

"What is your name?" Could it at least change the question?

"Bite me". Realizing that the laser is not working, it walks over to me and slaps me across the face.

"What is your name?"

"You tell me yours and I'll tell you mine". It punches me in the stomach.

"You will break".

"You can suck my...." It slaps me across the face, again. Two more T-700s walk in and escort me out of the interrogation room.

I am lead through dark corridors filled with cages. This place looks like a zoo from hell. There are various animals and people in the cages; all of them look close to death. The T-700s shove me in a cage with another person in it. I am about to make a witty remark, when I recognize the silhouette of my cell mate. It is Allison!

"Allison! Allison can you hear me?"

I run over to her and turn her over. She is barely breathing. God in heaven, what did these bastards do to her? I start to perform CPR, but her condition remains the same. Come on, Allison! Don't die on me now. I perform mouth to mouth resuscitation in addition to CPR. Come on, Allison, breathe! BREATHE!

Her breathing and her pulse return to normal. I did it! I saved her! Thank God my father forced me to take CPR classes. Allison regains consciousness and begins to scream. I throw my arms around her and try to calm her down, which could be difficult considering that we are in a cage and I am still naked.

"Sshh! It's ok. You're going to be ok. How are you feeling?"

"I thought they killed me".

"So did I". Tears are forming in my eyes. "I thought I lost you, Allison". She looks so confused right now. That is understandable, when you are lying in a cage with a naked man who is crying.

"Um....Have we met?" Oh great, this is before she went back in time. This Allison hasn't met me yet. On the bright side, now I know how she escaped from the machines. I'm the one that will save her, as soon as I figure out how.

"Well, you haven't met me yet. But I have met you". She has a lost puppy dog look on her face.

"You're confusing me".

"We met in the year 2009. My name is Captain Charles Zacks, and you and I will become very close in the future. Well.....the past. Time travel gives me a headache". I have never seen her eyes grow that wide before. Nor have I ever seen her that filthy before. I have got to get her out of here.

"So, we're....close".

"Oh...not THAT kind of close. More like a brother / sister kind of thing. Right now, your big brother is going to get you out of here".

"How?"

"I don't know yet; I like to make things up as I go along".

The first thing I need to do is get us out of this cage. I walk over to the bars and punch through them, forcing my way out of the cage. After breaking the bars and getting outside of the cage, I notice a pair of T-700s running towards me. I grab the first one and throw it into a wall. Then, I kick the second one behind its right knee and bring its head down to the same height as my arms.

"My name is Charles Zacks, and it is the last name you will ever hear". I grab its head and rip it off its body.

The second T-700 runs towards me, and I do a sweeping kick to trip the big brute. After it falls, I jump onto its chest, grab its head, and pull until it comes off. That takes care of the welcoming committee; now to figure out a way out of here. First, I will have to figure out where here is.

"Very impressive, Charles". It's the T-700 that was interrogating me earlier. I wonder why it did not attack me when the other two did.

"Afraid to face me, you big, metal coward".

"Such a waste; to contaminate a perfectly good chassis with a human brain".

"My heart and brain might be human, but the rest of me is still strong enough to rip you apart. Why don't you come out here and I'll show you".

"Perhaps some other time". My God: I am having a conversation with a T-700. Time to end this and get the hell out of here.

"I will only say this once: I am getting out of here and I am taking her with me. If I can not get her out of here, then I will rip this place apart along with everything in it. If you think I am bluffing, then try to stop me and see what happens". I am not sure, but I think I can hear it laughing.

"Go".

This might be a trap, but I don't care. I have to get her out of this place before they kill her. I grab Allison, throw her over my shoulder, and I start running. I run until I come across a door, which I promptly shatter into a million pieces. It is only after I shatter the door that I discover that we are on a ship in the middle of nowhere. I recognize the design; this is one of the seven factory ships. Escape will be difficult, but not impossible. If I can blow them up, I can escape from them.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spot a Hunter Killer refuelling on the deck. I run over to it, place Allison on the deck, and rip out the fuel pumps. Then, I rip open a side panel, smash the equipment, and place Allison inside the Hunter Killer. I hotwire the cockpit, and fly us off of the ship. Now to get back to the Resistance and get Allison some medical attention.

As we approach what used to be the headquarters for Connor's division, we are intercepted by a pair of A-10s. I trained most of the young pilots in Connor's division. I know their strategies and I know their tactics. More importantly, I know their codes. I begin to blink Morse code to the two A-10s through the Hunter Killer's eyes. The message reads: ATTENTION! FRIENDLIES ON BOARD! DO NOT FIRE! REPEAT: DO NOT FIRE!"

My Morse code is a little rusty, but it gets the message through. The A-10s come about and send a signal to me through their tail lights. The message reads: UNDERSTOOD! FOLLOW US BACK TO BASE! All three aircraft fly back to the old base and land on the airstrip. Soldiers carrying very familiar plasma rifles begin to surround the Hunter Killer. I guess John Henry survived J-Day and is now one of our chief weapons designers. With John Connor to lead us, and John Henry to arm us, SkyNet does not stand a chance. I walk out of the Hunter Killer carrying Allison over my shoulder.

"MEDIC! This girl needs medical attention, now!" The medics come out with a stretcher, which I lay her on. Before they wheel her away, I give her a kiss on the forehead. "I told you I would get you out, little sister". She just smiles and nods.

"Sir, can you tell me your name".

"Captain Charles Zacks of the Resistance. I would like to speak with our Commanding Officer".