CH 20
Allison returned to school to find a large banner across the front of their room reading 'Welcome home Allison'. Her other classmate's greetings and hugs were not as intense as Byron's had been. When she had gotten off the plane, Byron had almost knocked her down when he ran into her, hugging her tightly and weepingly telling her how glad he was she had come home in one piece. Still, their greetings were genuine, and after finishing the day's assignments before lunch, they pushed the middle row desks together facing each other and held a party in honor of Allison's return.
Allison had a fun time in school with her friends. She told bits about her stay in Nicaragua. Becky thought it was 'totally embarrassing' she had to take a bath in a lake with hundreds of other people. Allison focused mostly on how brave and kind the people were that she met.
Watching her anxiously, Arnie asked, "So, what were the battles like? Did you have to fight many?"
Allison's face drooped. "A couple," she said dimly. "Right when we got there, a big one was already going on. The men were out gunned and out numbered. We had to fight the moment we hit the ground. We were so spread out, that I had to fight my way to a bridge and hold it by myself." With a wince, she added, "It was awful."
Byron put an arm around her for comfort. "Guys, let's not," he told them with a shake of his head.
"The important thing is you made it back," Gloria said firmly. "I take it the people there accepted you all right?" she asked.
Allison shrugged and said, "They were nervous at first. They called me pequeno rosado la diablo, it means 'little pink devil'. Later on when General Basturo got Mom and me a real room to stay in, I went out on the balcony and a whole bunch of people on the street started chanting their name for me. I was really embarrassed."
"Really?" Jerome asked. "You do know that means they really liked you," he said.
"I wish someone would chant my name," Trudy said with a sigh.
Byron looked at Becky and cracked sly grin. Becky grew her own crooked smile. Together, they cried out, "Trudy, Trudy, Trudy!"
Jerome joined in the chant, followed by Allison, then Arnie.
Trudy blushed "Guys!" she complained.
"Trudy, Trudy, Trudy, Trudy!"
"Oh God," Trudy grumbled. When Trudy tried to hide her face, the rest of the class fell into laughter.
Not long after their chant for Trudy, the speaker in the front of the room announced, "Miss Weston, please come to the office."
Gloria got up and went over to answer it. "On my way," she replied. "I'll be right back," she told her class.
.
The principal eyed Gloria and asked, "Just what are you teaching, Miss Weston? We got a report of your class being excessively loud."
"We teach advanced studies. As for today, we were giving Allison a welcome home party. I must say I am surprised at anyone claiming we were excessively loud. Children are not church mice."
"It's all well and good you had a party for a student returning from... wherever, Miss Weston..."
"Allison was returning from Nicaragua, where she spent the last few weeks fighting a war," Gloria said firmly. "I do believe the girl deserves some acknowledgement for going there to keep Sky Net out of our hemisphere."
"How old is she?" the principal asked with his eyebrows raised.
"Allison Connor is seven, she has already saved us twice from Sky Net and earned the Congressional Medal of Honor. I do believe a little bit of tolerance can be afforded to her," Gloria stated.
The principal gapped at her. "The Allison Connor from the news? She's only seven?"
"And in Fifth grade. She is very intelligent, and special. I was assured there would be no interference to our class from the school. These are not normal students I am teaching, their IQ's are at least double from other children their ages. If they want to have a party to celebrate Allison coming home safely, then they will have one. Is that all, Sir?" Gloria asked heavily.
"She's only seven?"
"As of this week. Become familiar with your students. May I go? I have a class waiting for me."
The principal nodded. "Just be aware of the other classes," he said not quite looking at her. "She's only seven?" he asked again.
.
"No," Cameron said flatly to the government men who stood before her in the command bunker.
"But Mrs. Connor, if we analyze Allison, we can find out how she does the things she can do," one man pleaded.
"There is a chance we could find a way to help defeat Sky Net," another said.
"I do believe my wife said no," John stated. "That goes for me also. No one is experimenting with our daughter."
"Is this your attempt to make sure you keep having all the wins against Sky Net?" one man asked John.
John clenched his jaw at the accusation. "This is us as parents saying you are NOT going to treat our daughter like a lab rat! Everything we come up with to fight Sky Net, we have given to the military. Planes, ground vehicles, codes and software, as soon as we get it working we pass it out freely so everyone can benefit. You. Are. Not. Experimenting. On. Our. Daughter."
"That's your final word?" the older man asked.
Cameron tipped her head slightly. "It is. You don't want to start trouble you can't handle," she said in a flat tone.
"Is that a threat?"
"It's a promise."
The older man nodded and said, "Good day, Generals." The men turned and left.
As they watched them go, John said quietly to Cameron, "And here I thought we were all on the same side. Think we need to make an escape plan?"
"I already have one," Cameron replied.
"Good. We have a conference coming up on John Henry's plan to take control of the Sky Net communications and equipment. Before we get into that, let's see if this request of theirs was sanctioned."
"The could be Grays," Cameron said.
John nodded, "Or just some faction acting independently. We have them on video."
"And a drone following them. We will find out who they are," Cameron stated.
.
After school as they waited for the bus, Savannah came up to Allison and said, "Allison, I got a call from John Henry. He would like it if you would come to our house and go over something with him."
"OK, what is it?"
"He didn't say. Only that it was important."
Allison glanced at Byron. "Can Byron come too?" she asked.
"I don't see why not," Savannah said with a shrug.
Allison called her mother and asked if it was OK to go see John Henry. Cameron told her to go, and from now on, leave her phone on at all times, even in class. Allison wasn't sure why her mother said that, but did as she was told.
Going home with Savannah, Allison went down into John Henry's basement lab where he had an array of computers and monitors identical to those on his lab in the bunker. Fiber optic cable connected the two places, ensuring that at either place, he had full access and his network was secure from intrusion.
"Hi, John Henry," Allison said as she walked in with Byron right behind her.
"Hello, Allison, Byron," John Henry said pleasantly as he watched his screens. "I made a plan to take control of Sky Net's transmission stations, then the machines under control of those stations. The purpose is to prevent Sky Net from attacking South America and Africa."
On one monitor, The Indian sea was displayed, showing the eastern coast of Africa and the bottom of the Asian continent. Red dots on India and Sir Lanka were connected to Somalia and Madagascar by a red line. On another monitor, The Southern tip of South America and Antarctica was shown, a red dot on Antarctica was connected to two red lines, one to Brazil, and the other to Argentina.
John Henry explained. "My plan is to take over all the African transmissions stations, and those in South America and four I found stringing across Antarctica. After Sky Net sends it's signals to begin, I will reprogram the attack forces in flight to fly into the south Atlantic and the Indian ocean, climb to 40,000 feet, then shut down. The impact with the ocean should be sufficient to destroy the attack forces. and prevent the attack. Allison, I would like your opinion of what you would do."
"You got full control of these machines?" Byron asked.
"I will have when they get into range," John Henry stated.
Twisting her lip as she thought, Allison asked, "Can you show us on the maps where that will be?"
Dotted red lines appeared far off the coast of Africa, and encompassed South America and Antarctica. "Approximately here, where the dotted red lines are," John Henry said.
"Great!" Byron exclaimed. "You can take over the Southern force right away. Make them destroy their own base before you crash them," he beamed.
"Better yet," Allison said in a mussing tone. "If you have complete control of them, after the order for Antarctica machines destroy their base, order them to India, flying low so they will be under the radar, and have them to attack any other machines they encounter. Give one last order for them to shut down or destroy their own receivers so Sky Net cannot change their programs and is forced to fight it's own machines. Same thing for the ones heading to Africa."
John Henry looked at Allison and grew his creepy smile. "Yes, that is an excellent suggestion, Allison. Not only will that stop the attack, it will cause much collateral damage to Sky Net's own forces."
"Sun Tzu, use your enemy's weaknesses against him," Allison stated.
Tipping his head, John Henry asked, "Sun Tzu?"
"An ancient General who wrote the Art of War," Allison explained. "He was very smart. I have studied his words, and every time I use what he teaches, I win, be it in war games, or real life combat."
John Henry tipped his head and said, "The writings I found of Sun Tzu were written for ancient combat situations. We would not fare well using foot soldiers with spears, chariots and horses."
Sitting down by John Henry, Allison said, "What we are fighting with is different, but the principals are the same. We don't use chariots, we use mini-Stugs and tanks. We don't use cavalry, but we do use aircraft. The high ground for us is not usually a hill, but high in the air or satellites in space. When he talks about not 'attacking up hill', think of it as attacking a much more powerful force. Concepts like splitting up a large force to defeat it a piece at a time, and coming at your enemy from an unexpected direction, tricking and using their weakness against them still apply. Everything he says, can be related to modern day warfare."
Staring at Allison, John Henry said, "You are indeed very smart, Allison. Thank you for explaining, and for your suggestions. May I call on you if I need further military guidance?" Shifting his head to Byron, he asked, "And you also, Byron."
"Sure!" Byron beamed.
"Of course, John Henry," Allison assured him.
"Thank you, Allison. I must begin preparing," John Henry said, and returned to watching his monitors as computer code filled the screens.
.
Allison and Byron left the Weaver house to see three men standing on the sidewalk. Behind them was a long black car with the back door open.
The older man in the middle said, "Allison Connor, your Father wants you to come with us."
Allison's phone rang. She answered it.
"Allison."
Her mother's voice came over the phone. "Allison walk away from the men in front of you. If they try to stop you, disable them."
"OK, Mom," Allison replied. "But how do you know where we are?"
"I'm watching you with a drone. Be careful, I cannot hit them without endangering Byron. Hang up and get going."
"Right, Mom," Allison said, and closed her cell phone. Clasping Byron's hand, she led him across the yard, away from the men.
The men shadowed her. "Allison Connor, you must come with us!" the older man said again.
"Go away, or I'll hurt you!" Allison replied in a hard tone.
The men reached into their coats. Allison shot her mind hands out and grabbed their arms they were reaching with and pull them out so their hands were visible. The men jerked to the side with the motion. One man pulled a blocky device, the other two dropped the guns they had. Allison slapped the blocky device to the ground. She then turned, wrapped Byron in her arms, and shot herself up and away, aiming over the top of the next house.
"Ahhh!" Byron cried, and grabbed Allison to hold on tight.
As they flew away, the men picked their weapons up and followed. Allison landed behind the house next to the swimming pool. She pried Byron off her and snapped, "Hide!" She then raced back to confront the men.
Meeting the men as she ran out between the houses, the men with guns pointed their weapons and yelled, "STOP!" The man with the blocky weapon shot. A pair of thin wires came racing at her.
Allison jumped up, avoiding the wires. Lashing out, she slashed their wrists holding the weapons. Then men's right hands fell off. With a squeal of tires, the black car took off. Allison glanced at it and slashed at the right rear tire. She split the fender, tire and rim in half. The tire exploded, sending chunks of rubber flying.
Unmindful of the pain, the men all drew pistols from behind them with their left hands. They got a few shots at her, which Allison stopped. She then chopped off their left hands.
The men turned and fled, tucking their wrist stumps up under their arms. The sound of police sirens wailed out, coming closer.
Allison called her mother.
There was no hello, just Cameron's voice saying, "Get the driver, alive if possible."
Allison went after the car still trying to get away and leaving sparks where the rear end now dragged on the ground. Jumping up, Allison punched down on the hood hard. The hood drove into the engine compartment, the engine broke loose and drove into the road. The car bounced skidded to a stop. Allison landed by the wreck. The driver got out, Allison wrapped him in her mind hands. He cried out and tried to struggle. "Stop, or I will hurt you"' she barked.
The man who had been behind the wheel froze in place, eying her wide-eyed. Looking back up the street, the police had the other three on the ground, face down.
When more security men and an ambulance showed up, Allison released the driver so the police could take him away. She then went to find Byron.
.
John looked at his daughter and Byron sitting side by side at the kitchen table. Allison's look was questioning, she just wanted to find out what happen outside the Weaver house today. Byron looked a bit scared. The way he kept glancing at Allison, he wasn't scared for himself, but for her. John was pretty sure by what he'd seen from Byron since he met the kid, Allison would always have a good friend in him. That made him happy. What Cameron had extracted from those men today, didn't.
Clearing his throat, John said, "Those men were what we call Grays. They infiltrated the military, and have been feeding information back to Sky Net. Allison, one of their missions was to find you and capture you. If they couldn't capture you, they were to kill you. Lucky for us, they had no idea what they were dealing with. We found the headquarters to their group, and we're tracking down a few others. We also found signs of four other groups, but no real information as to where they are, or what they are doing. Allison, you are going to have to be wary of everyone around you and on guard at all times."
"Mr. Connor?" Byron asked meekly. "Why are people working for Sky Net? Don't they know Sky Net wants to kill us all?"
"Greed and selfishness," John told him. "Sky Net pays them very well, and promises they will be saved when the time comes. They like the money, and care only that they are able to survive. If we win, they live, If Sky Net wins, they live. Or so they are lead to believe."
"They should be shot," Bron stated as his brows furrowed.
"They will be," John assured him. "At the moment, I'm concerned about you two. If there are any terminators in these cells, they will be able to mimic anyone's voice. Cameron and I came up with a password system. If either of us sends someone to get you, or if we call you on the phone, or you call us on the phone, the person coming or the one calling says 'Jacobs'. The one being seen or called says "Ladder'. If that doesn't happen, you hang up, or quickly turn and walk away to get help." John put a pretend phone to his ear. "Allison, your phone just rang."
With a grin, Allison mimicked his motion. "Hello?"
"Hi, sweetie, it's Dad."
Allison closed up her pretend phone.
"Very good," John told her. He then looked at Byron. "Your phone just rang."
Byron mimicked putting his phone to his ear. "Hello."
"Jacobs"
"Ladder."
"Prefect, Byron," John said with a nod. "Both of you use this, even if you're calling each other. If the first words spoken are not the passwords, something is wrong. It's the same if Gramma, John Henry, Savannah, or Mrs. Weaver calls you. We are also going to get Dietrich Academy moved onto the base for better security. We want you to be as safe as possible."
.
Sally walked up to the main gate if the air base not looking the best. Here and there, patches of coltan still showed through where her skin had yet to heal over. Her blond hair had a bald spot on the top of her head, showing a small patch of coltan also. She'd been caught in one of the explosions in her apartment with her boyfriend. In the aftermath, she had dug herself out of the rubble, but the human man who loved her so much had been crushed to death. At the time, she was all but stripped of skin, and had no idea what to do. Hearing cries for help, she had assisted rescue squads in getting people out. When the gas was overtaking people, she'd worked hard to get them to shelter. Since the attacks, she had been doing everything she could to help whoever was in need.
One thing she could not do, was stop the hollow felling inside her. Before the attack, she had enjoyed sleeping, or rather laying quietly cuddled up with her man as he slept. She kept herself from thinking about finding his broken, bloody body by keeping busy all the time. Day and night Sally worked, focusing on what needed to be done. Only now, there was little for her to do. The people were recovered, and several had mentioned she should go up to the base stating she would be more help there. So Sally did.
Walking up to the gate, Sally saw the low, tracked vehicle beside the gate, it's canon pointed right at her. She also noted a solider pointed a rocket launcher at her, three other guards wee to the sides, eyeing her through the sights of their guns.
"Halt where you are!" one solider called loudly.
Sally did, raising her arms up in surrender. She called out, "My name is Sally. I came to see Cameron Connor. I need a job to do."