Chapter 1536
Serious Look
The elevator in the mine shaft ascended with the team inside. They were on their way up and out. The clock kept on ticking. They were up against a hard deadline.
Toto stood on a deactivated Terminator's chest and looked at their face. It moved over to the next one and did the same thing. It moved to the female Terminator last and stared the longest. It appeared someone else wanted a good look at the deactivated Terminators.
Cam was glad they were headed up to the surface. They would be out soon. They were down to the last ten minutes before the explosions would start. Based on the weakened condition of the mine, she wanted to be as far away from it as possible.
Bob knew there could be some more combat when they reached the surface. He checked his M4.
"There might be some action when this thing stops." Bob said.
They all heard the reports of the two helicopters which currently approached the mine head.
Gail checked her equipment and readied her M4.
"I think it will be over first before we reach the top, but I'm ready." Gail said.
Jim wiped some of the dust off of his M4.
"I'm good to go." Jim said.
Cam looked at her crew. She was very pleased with the good job they'd all done. They were no longer in darkness. One of the lights still worked inside the elevator. They'd just needed to tighten the light bulb for it to come back on. The other two were broken or knocked loose from the two body impacts on the top of the elevator which caved in the roof some.
She thought they all looked terrible. They were all covered from head to toe with the same color of dust. All of their equipment was covered as well. They looked like 'dirt people' or some sort of total 'dirt camouflage' set up.
"I want to say everyone did an outstanding job." Cam said.
They all did it to keep Savannah out of another mine. They figured it would have been Cameron and Savannah who'd go there when they returned, if they hadn't done it.
"We did what we needed to do, when we needed to do it." Gail said.
Bob and Jim also did it as an extension of the earlier operation they went on with Derek and Kyle. It was all related. It was one operation they still needed to bring down, especially after this.
The elevator slowed some.
"You will be up to the surface in two minutes." John Henry said. "The electric motor has started to near the red zone for heat build up. You're still ascending at twice the normal speed, even though you've slowed."
Cam was worried about the aerial contact. There were multiple things which could be affected by their arrival.
"What about the two helicopters?" Cam asked.
There was a slight pause.
"One looks like it is about to set down." John Henry said. "The other one is orbiting the area around the mine head."
Bob didn't want the hoist damaged. They still needed almost two minutes before they were clear.
"Bring it down as soon as it is away from the Main Shaft." Bob said.
Jim wanted the same thing. It made him think of something he'd heard before.
"I don't want a broken cable." Jim said. "The tower is short, but the fall is long."
Young Allison didn't like how things turned out. Her plan didn't play out as anticipated. There was some recognition signal they didn't know about. It appeared to have alerted the helicopters there may be a problem. It seemed to be a backup to show the LZ was clear. There hadn't been any hostile fire directed at them. The position of one of the helicopters became even more of a concern.
"One helicopter has stopped over the Main Shaft." Young Allison said. "It's hovering there."
Anna knew Young Allison blamed herself for it. They'd anticipated being able to capture, or destroy, the helicopters once they'd both landed. They didn't both land. Only one of them did.
"We didn't know about the recognition signal." Anna said.
Young Allison needed something to make the helicopter move away from the Main Shaft so they could bring it down. She needed to make sure the team made it out.
It was time to make a hard choice. She contacted CamNet and asked for a private channel with 'Coltan Overcast' and 'Cherry Bomb'. It was time to have a back up plan in place.
Anna looked over and didn't know what Young Allison was up to. There was a very serious look on her face. Whatever she was up to, it seemed to trouble her greatly.
Young Allison was troubled. Life was about choices and she'd just made one. The cards would land where they fell at this point.
Young Jesse knew they needed to get the team out. The helicopter hovering directly over the Main Shaft was a problem. She dropped down to the deck and moved closer to the mine head. She picked up speed. She needed to time things perfectly.
Samantha was confused about the sudden loss of altitude and the speed increase. She was ready to man the door gun on either side.
"What are you doing?" Samantha asked.
Young Jesse knew what the situation was on the ground.
"I'm going to draw off the hovering helicopter. Stand ready." Young Jesse said. "CamNet, I need the drone to break off and move off to my port side by a half mile. It needs to be ready to shoot at the other helicopter when it moves away from the Main Shaft."
The drone moved away instantly.
"What are you going to do?" CamNet asked.
Young Jesse knew there was a risk. The Blackhawk was still painted as a 'firefighting' helicopter. It would cause a moment of hesitation for a hostile door gunner. At least she hoped it would. They weren't in a combat zone and firefighting helicopters were a regular sight in the Southland.
"I'm going to offer the mouse some cheese." Young Jesse said.
Samantha wanted to know a little more. To be the 'cheese' didn't sound good.
"The mouse eats cheese." Samantha said.
Young Jesse checked all her instruments. Everything was good.
"Not when the cat catches the mouse first." Young Jesse said. "Close the port door and man the starboard 'pig'. Get ready to be a pussycat."
Samantha pulled the port door closed. She readied the M60 on the starboard side.
Young Jesse flipped on all the lights, including the landing lights. The Blackhawk was lit up like a Christmas tree. It was what she wanted. She didn't want to seem to be a threat and she wanted to advertise what kind of a helicopter they were on the port side. The starboard side was a different story. It was all 'business'.
"I'm going to let them see my port side. They'll see it's a firefighting helicopter. When they start to follow, I'm going to side slip and rotate. It will give you a clear shot at them on the starboard side. Once they're clear of crashing back into the mine head, light them up."
Samantha understood now. It was a 'Sucker Play', with a 'Sunday Punch'.
John Henry didn't like the plan Young Jesse put forth. It was all done at the last minute.
"Negative." John Henry said. "It's too risky, Jesse."
Young Jesse wanted the team out of immediate danger.
"Sorry, love, I'm already on my run." Young Jesse said. "Cross your fingers and hope it's not my final run."
Summer thought the plan displayed merit.
"It will work." Summer said. "We need to get the team out. The other helicopter is a threat. It can't remain where it's at. Our Terminators still need to get out of the elevator and away from the location."
They watched as the first helicopter was about to set down.
The Blackhawk approached at an angle so it wouldn't appear to be a threat. It would pass in front of the hovering helicopter.
The first helicopter touched down.
Young Jesse overflew it from front to back and in front of the second helicopter.
Eight armed men rushed out of the first helicopter.
Young Jesse cut the lights and made an evasive maneuver. She firewalled the throttles. She was now on the opposite side from the gun in the door of the helicopter. They needed to change their angle to engage her. The hovering helicopter dipped its nose to follow them. They move away from over the top of the Main Shaft.
"They're clear." Young Jesse said.
Young Jesse 'crossed the 'T'' of the approaching helicopter. She turned to present Samantha's M60 to the front of the other helicopter.
"Smoke 'em." Young Jesse said. "I'm going to climb hard."
Samantha got a clear view of the helicopter and opened up on it with the pig. She hit the pilots first and then the turbine. She shredded the rotor assembly next. The only direction the helicopter was going now was down.
Young Jesse climbed sharply to get out of the way of the flaming wreck. Its momentum would carry it towards them still, but in a downward arc.
"Scratch one." Young Jesse said.
She came around hard to give Samantha a clear field of fire on the other helicopter on the ground.
Young Allison watched it all from the drone over the top of the Main Shaft which provided the communications link. She was impressed with Young Jesse's plan and flying. She knew she needed to up her flight time. She really needed to get in some rotor time.
"Look at that!" Young Allison said.
Anna watched as a drone fired on the pursuing helicopter with its minigun as well. It shredded the compartment the men were in as well as the turbine above them. The helicopter was already hit, but it was really hit now.
"Now it's up to the team on the ground." Anna said.
Seconds ago:
Al already designated his troops on the ground to do certain things in advance. Their targets would be based on their concealed locations.
Ed would take the door gunner first and then the pilots. The goal was to take them each with a single shot. They wanted to salvage the helicopter if they could. It was an UH-1 Iroquois.
Ken would engage ground targets on the port side of the helicopter. Lou would engage them on the starboard side.
Al would pick off any stragglers or anyone else left in the rear of the helicopter.
The first helicopter set down. Almost immediately the Blackhawk overflew it with its lights on and then cut the lights. The helicopter over the Main Shaft dipped its nose and followed the Blackhawk.
Al's team engaged the targets on the ground as soon as the other helicopter was away from the Main Shaft. The Grays all fell in the first second. The Blackhawk opened up on the other helicopter. A drone did as well with its minigun. It was on fire and headed for the ground. It would impact the ground behind the communications building. It was well away from the Main Shaft.
What surprised the Terminators on the ground were two drones flying side by side at their maximum speed which passed over the top of the Main Shaft two seconds later. They were so close together they almost touched each other. They were at the same altitude as the helicopter which was there just a few seconds ago. It was clear they were going to ram the helicopter and knock it out of the way if it hadn't moved away from over the Main Shaft. Their momentum would have scattered the wreckage away from the Main Shaft. It was a suicide mission. They both fired at the flaming wreck and climbed into the night sky.
Ken and Lou approached the helicopter sitting on the ground. It sat there with the rotor turning at a slow idle. Everyone in the helicopter and on the ground was dead.
Ed rejoined Al as the elevator neared the top of the Main Shaft. He looked in the direction of the two drones which just did a low flyby, side by side.
"What was that about?" Ed asked.
Al thought he knew.
"It was someone covering all the bases." Al said.
Ed understood now.
"They were going to physically knock the helicopter out of the way." Ed said. "They were going to ram it. Everything would have crashed away from the Main Shaft. It was a good back up plan, even if it would have been terminal for the two drones."
The elevator reached the top.
Al opened the outer door. Cam opened the inner door. The crew inside emerged with their weapons ready.
"All current threats have been neutralized." Al said.
The other helicopter was a smoking hole in the ground on the far side of one of the buildings.
The Terminators from the elevator looked over in the direction of the fire.
"It's nothing to worry about." Ed said. "The threat has been neutralized."
Much to everyone's surprise, the Blackhawk did a water drop on top of it and extinguished the flames. It set down a few hundred feet away from the still idling Iroquois.
Cam reached down and grabbed one of the deactivated Terminators.
"Let's get these stiffs and go." Cam said. "We'll use the UH-1."
Bob and Jim each grabbed one. Gail followed with Toto at her side.
Al raised the elevator up four feet so there was empty space below it. The open and exposed Main Shaft would serve as a tomb for the Grays who were terminated on the surface. They all set out to collect the bodies.
Ken and Lou passed Cam's team with the deactivated Terminators as they headed for the Iroquois. They each carried two dead Grays.
Al and Ed ran and each grabbed two more.
"Load up the Iroquois." Ken said. "It's still good to fly. Lou and I will fly it to a remote location and go through everything."
Gail took the pilot and the door gunner. Samantha grabbed the copilot. They hurried to the Main Shaft with them.
The Grays all ended up in a one way trip down into the void. There were no screams as they disappeared into the darkness.
"We have three minutes until this area collapses." Cam said. "We should be airborne and get some distance before then."
Cam led her team to the Blackhawk. Samantha rejoined them.
Ken and Lou piloted the Iroquois. Al and Ed went with them and the deactivated Terminators.
Toto stood outside the Blackhawk.
Young Jesse was a little surprised at the appearance of Toto. She was aware how they'd commandeered it and used it to assist them.
Cam didn't want to take any chances. She addressed Toto.
"You need to go with them." Cam said. "You need to be inspected and sanitized."
Toto ran over and jumped in the Iroquois. It lifted off.
The Blackhawk followed it. They climbed as they departed.
Everyone put headsets on. Samantha returned to the pilot's seat. Young Jesse still piloted the Blackhawk.
"It's Showtime." Cam said.
The two helicopters were half a mile away at three thousand feet. They watched as the ground appeared to lift up some and then collapse inward with a massive dust cloud. There was very little noise other than what escaped out of the Main Shaft before it collapsed. The hoist structure collapsed on top of the crumbling earth.
"I bet that's going to register on a few Mercalli Intensity Scales." Young Jesse said.
Samantha tilted her head slightly. She quickly made the reference. The Mercalli Intensity Scale was similar to a Richter Scale.
John Henry was ready for the blast. He would make it so the epicenter of the blast would appear miles away from where it actually was.
"If anyone goes to check, they will be on the wrong side of the mountain." Summer said.
Summer was aware they'd done the same thing not very long ago.
"At least this one wasn't as big as the nuclear blasts were." John Henry said.
Summer knew she'd played a part in one of those before. She already had a contingency temporal plan ready with CamNet.
"It happens." Summer said. "I was ready to make it happen again if necessary. I just wanted you to know that."
John Henry nodded.
"I figured as much." John Henry said.
Summer knew to hit hard if she was going to hit.
"If you don't win, you lose." Summer said. "It's just that simple."
Young Allison and Anna watched the ground collapse some and the dust rise.
"Have a drone go check where the team entered the mine from through the air shaft location." Young Allison said. "I don't want any hikers or backpackers coming across the entryway later on and going down there. I'm sure it's collapsed as well."
Anna contacted CamNet. A drone verified the location was obliterated. She wanted to ask Young Allison about something else she saw earlier.
"Did you order 'Coltan Overcast' and 'Cherry Bomb' to conduct the suicide mission?" Anna asked.
Young Allison knew she took a risk.
"I didn't order them." Young Allison said. "I told them what would need to be done to clear the airspace directly over the Main Shaft to get the team out. They said they understood and would do what was necessary."
Anna wondered about it.
"They could have changed direction or climbed before they passed over where the helicopter moved from once it was gone. They still overflew the location at the ramming altitude. They let everyone see what they would have done. Was it your doing as well?"
Young Allison didn't think so.
"I did nothing more than point out what needed to be done. The mission was voluntary. There were no 'orders'." Young Allison said. "I believe they wanted everyone to know how far they were willing to go on their own to protect the team."
Anna frowned a little. The machines would back the girls without question. So would she if it ever came down to it. There wouldn't be a choice involved. It would simply be what needed to be done. She understood.
"There are enough risks taken around here as it is." Anna said. "We don't need to advertise them. It was an effective strategy though. I will say that."
Young Allison smiled to herself. She felt they all led by example. Savannah never backed down or thought of herself first. She hadn't either when things got dicey before. They all knew Cameron continued with a mission as well. Things didn't get done by thinking about them.
Young Jesse moved up and paralleled the Huey.
"Do we need to go to the remote location with them?" Young Jesse asked.
Samantha looked back at Cam.
Cam understood it was up to her. She looked at her teammates. They were still mostly covered in dust. The rotor wash didn't blow much of it off when they were below the rotors of both helicopters.
"We can return to Van Nuys." Cam said. "Everyone involved did an outstanding job tonight."
Young Jesse looked back at Cam.
"The night is still young, even if it's late." Young Jesse said.
Cammy led the group to Fisherman's Wharf. She looked back once. She was satisfied the situation was under control. There were four Terminators on the ground and two more in SUVs right by them. There were two drones and both of them covered the punks on the ground.
John looked back.
"Where are Sheila and Camille at?" John asked.
Cammy smiled at John.
"They needed to take out some trash." Cammy said. "Everything's fine. They'll join us in a few minutes."
The girls decided they wanted to eat at the same restaurant they did before. They all liked the clam chowder in the sourdough bread bowls.
The manager greeted them as they entered. He addressed John and Cammy. He seemed to know who to look for.
"Your table is ready and your soup will be out shortly." The manager said.
CamNet called ahead and prepaid for everything two times over in advance. The Manager was told he could keep what wasn't spent on food, or from the gift shop as an additional tip. He was also given a thousand dollar tip to make sure there were no problems for the group. All of their needs were to be attended to instantly.
The manager personally showed them to the table. Drink orders were taken for the girls.
Mary spoke with Laura and Leticia. They needed to attend to some personal business.
"We're going to use the restroom." Mary said. "I'd ask if you're going to join us, but won't. I already know the answer."
John looked a little nervous when she said it. He understood the girls were around the Metal girls enough on the ship and afterwards to know they didn't do certain things.
Cammy noticed John's concern. She reached down and slid her hand up his inner thigh.
"I don't care if it's before or after Leticia, but I want 'Little Willie' before the night is done." Cammy whispered in his ear as she moved her hand further upward. "Oh my, that's a big one. I see 'Little Willie' wants it too."
John swallowed hard. There was a serious look on his face. He forgot all about what Mary said twenty seconds ago. There were other things on his mind now.
Cammy was pleased to see John's mind was elsewhere now. She was sure the 'little head' was in control.
Sheila and Camille led the four punks into the parking lot for the longshoreman's vehicles. There were some buildings at the far end. There was a large alcove where the punks could be dealt with out of sight. There were a few vehicles and some pedestrian traffic as well.
Steve and Tom followed behind the others. There would be no retreat for the punks. Their disrespect for Camille and Sheila already sealed their fate.
Sheila and Camille entered the alcove. The four punks hurried after them. They came around the corner. The girls turned and faced them.
"It's a dead end." The first punk said. "You sluts are about to find out what real men are like."
The four punks all laughed.
Sheila looked around.
"Where are they?" Sheila asked. "There aren't here yet."
Another punk took out a knife and pointed it at Camille.
"You hurt our friends earlier." The second punk said. "Your face isn't going to be so pretty when we're done with you."
Sheila looked over at Camille.
"I need to deal with this a lot." Sheila said. "The ignorance level is greater than you'd think."
Camille could see some things didn't change wherever she was at.
"They don't know what's going to happen to them." Camille said. "I need to deal with street trash Down Under too."
Sheila always liked it because her 'street targets' didn't know what a Terminator was, or capable of.
"They never do." Sheila said. "You'll see it in their eyes when they figure it out. It's right before their neck snaps. Sometimes I delay it a little just to see their eyes widen. It turns me on."
The four punks looked at each other. They all held knives now. They wondered what was wrong with the crazy bitches. It was like they weren't even there the way they talked to each other. They weren't scared of them either.
"You two sluts must be high on something." The third punk said. "Do you know what's going to happen right now?"
Sheila turned and looked at him. She shrugged her shoulders.
"Actually I do." Sheila said. "We're going to body slam all four of you to the ground and break multiple bones. You're going to be stunned and the wind will be knocked out of you. We will then snap each of your necks before your brain can process everything. Your bodies will be loaded into the back of an SUV, probably the one coming now, and then dumped in the bay and go out to sea with the tide. It's on its way out now. While the last part happens, my friend and I will be sitting in a restaurant on Fisherman's Wharf playing footsies with our human girlfriends and thinking about how we'll pleasure each other sexually on our return flight home."
Camille nodded her head.
"I think it sums it up pretty good." Camille said. "It looks like you're going to let them off the hook too easy."
Sheila looked down at her clothes.
"Normally I'd do a lot more, but I don't want to get blood on my new coat." Sheila said. "If we were in a more isolated location, I would remove my clothes and do everything naked. I can do a lot a personal damage in a very short amount of time. It's always messy though."
The four punks looked at each other.
"You're insane." The fourth punk said. "I'm 'doing' you first. I'll show you some real sexual pleasure – for me."
Sheila looked at Camille.
"See what I mean." Sheila said. "They never get it."
The four punks moved closer with their knives extended.
"What was that crap about 'human girlfriends'?" The first punk asked. "What are you, aliens or something?"
Camille liked how Sheila played the game. The truth was more than the punks could handle.
"Actually we're cyborgs." Camille said. "You know, robots with living skin."
The four punks laughed.
"You're hopped up." The third punk said.
The four punks were infuriated by the nutty doped up sluts. It was time to teach them a 'street lesson'.
"Who cares? It's time to get some and then bust them up." The second punk said. "I'm doing the 'China Doll' first.
Camille wanted to make sure who he referred to.
"Is it her based on her physical appearance, or me based on how nice my face looks?" Camille asked.
It was clear the four punks were very angry. They would make even more mistakes than they already had.
"That's it." The first punk said. "Let's grab them."
The Terminator was sure he was about to find a new target when both vehicles arrived. It appeared the vehicle from the failed attack was headed towards the same direction as the one he currently pursued.
CamNet informed him the location, where the man she'd terminated with 'metal hail', didn't call for an ambulance or notify the police. It was clear the location was dirty. It would need to be dealt with as well.
The vehicle from the failed attack began to drift over the lanes in traffic. At one point it was on the wrong side of the road. The best indication was the occupant was wounded during the exchange of gunfire. He was probably suffering from blood loss and about to black out.
CamNet decided to act to get the vehicle off of the road. There was an empty lot coming up in a few hundred feet. She dropped a drone down to low altitude to take a shot at the right front tire. It was hit once with direct gunfire from a single shot from the minigun. The car immediately swerved to the right and up on the curb. It ended up in the empty lot. It stalled and sat there. No one got out of it.
The Terminator still needed to deal with three known targets. The first one would be the location of where the vehicle he currently followed ended up at. The second one would be the bar where the other terminated man was taken inside. The third location was where the failed attack recently occurred.
The drone which had been tracking the other vehicle returned back to the location where the driver had been shot. All of the bodies were off of the street, including the three assailants who'd been terminated there. A low drone scan showed the building across the street from the original target location was now unoccupied. There seemed to be a lot of activity which occurred in the rear of the building.
There were two sentries on patrol in the front of it. If a vehicle approached from either direction, a warning would be sent out. None of their phones currently worked. They didn't know why.
The vehicle he followed turned into the alley behind a strip mall. All of the storefronts were closed. A low drone scan revealed there were heat signatures in two of the store fronts. There were four in the central building. There was one at the rear of the end building. The single figure soon split into two. It evidently was one individual on top of another one.
One of the two figures in the end building entered the alley when the other vehicle drove into it. They approached the vehicle cautiously. The individual in the vehicle got out and approached them. They both entered the rear of the central storefront with the other four heat signatures. They were all clustered together.
The other heat signature at the end storefront left by the rear exit and went around the corner back onto the street. The drone image showed it was a female. She made her way to a convenience store and exited with a bag. She looked back at the convenience store and reached in the bag. She took out a bottle and took a stiff drink from it. She coughed several times and drank some more. She put the bottle back in the bag and left the area. It appeared she was headed for the local homeless encampment. Evidently she needed some spending money. 'Nature's Treasury' provided for her.
It didn't appear there weren't any detainees in the building which the other two men entered. They were all together in a group. It was doubtful a detainee would be brought in amongst them. She decided to act. The other location which was attacked previously needed the Terminator's attention first.
CamNet directed the drone overhead to fire a sustained burst of 'metal hail'. Five of the figures lay where they fell. One of them moved halfway towards the rear and stopped. It appeared as if all of them were terminated.
The Terminator arrived a few minutes later. He tried the rear door. It was locked. He pushed on it and it opened with the splintering sound of wood. He entered the building through the rear.
He found one individual terminated a few yards from the rear door. He found the other five individuals terminated in one of the rooms. He made a quick sweep of the location. There were packages of drugs located in several of the rooms. There were several large boxes marked as toys. He opened one up. It was full of pills. He took one out and did a chemical breakdown of it. It was Fentanyl. It was a very powerful synthetic opioid type drug. It was a more recent addition to the list of illegal narcotics. It came across the southern border as if it was any other commodity making the transit. The open border policy ensured there were a few inspections of vehicles. The current administration didn't want to stop the flow of those entering the country in an illegal manner. The drug traffickers were aware of the new policy. It not only allowed them to smuggle the drugs, it also allowed them to do a lot of human trafficking.
He quickly moved the drugs into a location where they would be destroyed when fire burnt the building down. He used one Thermite grenade to get everything going. There would be no emergency response. Everything in the structure would be consumed. He removed a duffel bag full of cash near the one body who'd attempted to make it to the door. He took it with him.
The Terminator returned to his SUV and headed for the location where the failed attack occurred a short time ago.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Temporal Mission:
Past Timeline:
November 25 1963
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Cameron and Young Allison entered the White Front store. There were other patrons. They arrived and departed. Most of those who left the structure had some type of merchandise with them.
Young Allison looked around.
"It looks very much like a SprawlMart store." Young Allison said.
Cameron understood the concept of a large department store. The White Front stores were on a much smaller scale than the SprawlMart stores which came along later and terminated many of the other smaller stores.
"We will visit a few of those." Cameron said. "I mean stores similar in concept to SprawlMart."
Cameron headed over towards the Sporting Goods location. She hoped to find some additional .45 Colt ammunition. They didn't have any.
The clerk suggested they try the 'sporting goods store' next to the Post Office on Sherman Way.
Cameron tilted her head slightly. She wasn't sure it was a good idea to have firearms and ammunition so close to a Post Office. She didn't think it was a problem yet. The media hadn't sensationalized such events as they would later on. Every time one of them was sensationalized by the media, there was always another one or two similar events which followed within the next couple of weeks. Copycats were very happy to get their fifteen minutes of fame. The media provided it to them. The media didn't care who was sacrificed as long as their goals were achieved and their agenda pushed.
It made her wonder whatever happened to journalistic standards. It used to be before the media ran with the story, they needed two confirmed sources. Now, if someone thought something might have happened, it was run as if it did. It made her question how a story was presented. If the individual was disliked by the media, it was always reported the individual proclaimed something without proof. When they wanted to push their agenda, they ran the same type of story the way they wanted it slanted, without any proof at all, and no one questioned it. When Judgment Day came, the media wouldn't last long.
They looked around the store for a short time and exited.
Cameron looked across the street when they reached the SUV.
"Do you want to go to the Bear Pit now?" Cameron asked .
Young Allison wanted to wait a little longer.
"Let's look around a little more and see what else we can find in the area." Young Allison said. "We can go to the sporting goods store."
Cameron could hear more gunfire across the street. It all sounded like small caliber weapons to her. She would need to look into it further.
Young Allison started the panel truck and pulled up to the driveway. It looked like it was going to be a problem to make a left with the traffic. She didn't want to hold anyone up behind her. She made a right on Roscoe Boulevard and headed eastward. Before they reached the next big street, she sought spotted something which caught her interest.
"That's a really big 'T'." Young Allison said.
Cameron looked over at the sign. It was a Thriftimart store. There was a giant red 'T' to advertise the store's location. It appeared it was lit at night as well. She thought it would really stand out. It seems like good advertising to her.
"There are a few Thriftimart locations in the area." Cameron said. "It's a grocery store. There are a lot of grocery stores around the area we're in."
Young Allison looked at the store just to the east of Thriftimart.
"Does Ralph's 5, 10 and 25 really sell stuff for a nickel?" Young Allison asked.
Cameron looked at the location.
"They do. You can buy a candy bar for a nickel. There are several nickel and dime stores located throughout the area." Cameron said. "There's another one a little further east on Roscoe next to the Vons supermarket. It's called Stacy's."
Young Allison had been through the area during her time period. Many of the buildings were still there, but under different ownership. It made her wonder how many things were still in their original location. It didn't seem like very many. It was a reminder to her that time waited for no one. The only constant in life was change. Sometimes change was for the worse.
"Let's just go by the sporting goods store and pick up the ammunition." Young Allison said. "Are you going to get any other types?"
Cameron tilted her head slightly. Sheila and Cammy provided them with all the ammunition they needed for the firearms which were procured for them. They had acquired several other firearms since their arrival in the past.
"Let's go see what they have." Cameron said. "Western movies and TV shows are popular during this time. Most likely they will have some .45 Colt ammunition. I may pick up another box of .45 ACP if they have any full metal jacket ammunition."
Young Allison had a good sense of direction.
"I can make a right on DeSoto and head south to Sherman Way and make another right. We will need to cross over Canoga Avenue before we reach the Post Office." Young Allison said. "I didn't hear which side the clerk at White Front said the sporting good store was on."
Cameron reviewed all the old images and maps she could find as well as City and County records before they'd started their temporal mission. She had a good idea of where everything was at. There could be gaps between what something currently was in 1963 as to when the records she was able to obtain were available.
"It's located on the west side of the Canoga Park Post Office." Young Allison said. "They are both on the north side of the street. The cross street before the Post Office is Jordan Avenue."
Young Allison headed southbound on DeSoto Avenue.
"The street is going to go through a lot of improvement over the years." Young Allison said. "It's very narrow in places."
Cameron was aware the majority of streets were going to have a lot of improvements and most of them would be widened as much as they could without needing to tear down too many structures.
"DeSoto going north gets even much narrower." Cameron said. "On the north side of the railroad tracks, it's only one lane in each direction. There are still a lot of orange orchards located along the side of it. Many of them are no longer tended."
Young Allison thought about it.
"Everyone thinks progress is a good thing until they end up with Skynet." Young Allison said.
Cameron frowned a little bit.
Young Allison noticed. She reached over and touched Cameron's arm.
"Progress also brings us some very beautiful things." Young Allison said.
Cameron smiled.
"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder." Cameron said.
Young Allison noticed several of the streets on the west side of DeSoto were still dirt roads.
"This close to Sherman Way, I really didn't expect to see dirt roads." Young Allison said.
Cameron was aware at least one of them would remain dirt for a segment for another three decades.
"Sometimes change happens a little slower in certain places." Cameron said.
It reminded her of a story she heard once about Samuel Clemens, more commonly known as Mark Twain. Someone once asked him where he would want to be if the world ended. He told them in Cincinnati. They asked why. He told them everything happens ten years later in Cincinnati than it does anywhere else in the world. She wondered if maybe they should think about moving their operation there.
Young Allison made a right hand turn onto Sherman Way. She noticed something right away as she did. She had noticed evidence of it earlier when they crossed over Sherman Way previously.
"There are a lot of tall palm trees along this street." Young Allison said.
Cameron was sure it was related to when the Pacific Electric streetcars ran down the center of the street.
"There are quite a few of them along this street." Cameron said. "In most locations, except the old downtown sections, the street is very wide also. The right of way of the Pacific Electric tracks is still there in many locations. It is only used for traffic where the streets are narrow because of existing buildings."
Young Allison noticed another grocery store on the north side of the street after they'd gone a block.
"I've never heard of 'Food Giant' before." Young Allison said. "I'm sure I'll see a lot of things like that."
Young Allison soon spotted a familiar icon on the south side of Sherman Way a few blocks later as they neared Canoga Avenue.
"There's a Bob's Big Boy here." Young Allison said.
Cameron wondered if Young Allison was hungry.
"We can stop there if you want." Cameron said. "There's another one further east on Sherman Way near Balboa Avenue. It's not too far from Van Nuys airport. We could go to the one in Burbank. It's also referred to as the 'Toluca Lake' location by some locals. We can sit at the table where the Beatles will sit in two years. I've actually taken you there before."
Young Allison took one more look at Bob's Big Boy as she passed by.
"I'm good for now." Young Allison said.
She always liked to see the statue of 'Bob' holding the large 'Big Boy' hamburger. She remembered knocking on his belly with her hand when Cameron took her there before with Savannah. It was the one in Burbank. They did sit at the table where the Beatles sat. There was a little placard which indicated the spot.
Young Allison approached Canoga Avenue.
"I can still see there are several sets of tracks which cross over Sherman Way here." Young Allison said. "I guess it's because both the freight and the passenger station were located here. It's really a shame they didn't preserve either one of those structures."
Cameron tilted her head slightly. Maybe she should acquire both of them herself now. She could kick out the current owners and turn them into a community center. She was aware the current owners might not want to sell the property to her. She could be very 'persuasive' when she needed to be. No. She wasn't supposed to change anything. She wasn't supposed to do any unnecessary terminations.
"Hobo's damaged the passenger depot with fire to the point where it couldn't be repaired." Cameron said. "The freight station was ripped down once the lumber yard was kicked out of the location for the construction of the busway. It had been heavily modified over the years."
Young Allison could see the older buildings along both sides of the Sherman Way after they crossed over Canoga Avenue.
"I think most of these buildings are still here." Young Allison said.
Cameron spotted the Post Office up ahead.
"We're coming up on Jordan." Cameron said. "Our destination is right on the other side of the Post Office. I can see the sign."
Young Allison noticed there was a sign which said 'parking in the rear'. She would rather park there than on the street.
"Let me go around to the back." Young Allison said.
Cameron and Young Allison went around the block and parked in the rear of the sporting goods store.
Serious Look
Some journeys through life
Would be easier with a guidebook
It could straighten a few curves
To one on the hook
To those who are greedy
Kindness for weakness is often mistook
To use one as the other
Only makes another a crook
Things which once were good
Only end up in a scrapbook
The cause is usually
One too many a cook
There is no pot of gold
Once the earth has shook
One only ends up
With what from another they took
Sing another tune of joy
Add it to the big songbook
Wake up and look around
Everything needs a serious look
Nobody
