Chapter 1540


A Piece Of The Action


John Henry wondered why the Grays didn't call or make contact with anyone when he gave them the opportunity to do so.

Summer picked up on it right away too.

"There's a problem." Summer said.

Jesse wondered what it was, or how they knew.

"What's the problem?" Jesse asked.

John Henry considered turning on more phones. He thought it might look suspicious at this point.

"They didn't make the call." John Henry said. "The drone verified the phone is turned on and they turned it off after a minute without using it."

They watched the vehicles stop.

"It's more bad news." Summer said.

Jesse watched the drone footage of the little 'pow wow'.

"They're making plans." Jesse said.

The Gray returned to the first car. Soon afterward, the vehicles split up.

John Henry didn't believe the new development was a good one.

"This looks like a problem." John Henry said. "They suspect something."

Summer wondered where things went wrong.

"I don't think anything of ours was detected." Summer said. "This is probably the precursor to an ambush of some type. They may have anti-aircraft equipment. They may have a way to check to see who's following them."

John Henry sent all the drones up to fifty thousand feet. It was the altitude they used for daylight surveillance. He told Summer and Jesse what he'd just done.

Jesse was even more worried about Young Jesse now.

"It leaves the Blackhawk as the only thing in the air around there." Jesse said.

It seemed like a good idea to have the Blackhawk set down at one of the local municipal airports, or maybe even a private one. There was no need to make it a target when it didn't need to be.


John Henry updated the team in the Blackhawk.

"Where do you want me to go?" Young Jesse asked. "What's the best choice?

Cam discussed it with John Henry. She didn't want to write more into it than was actually there yet.

"The Grays in the two vehicles haven't contacted anyone yet. I don't think we're an immediate target." Cam said.

They selected a local airport. They would land and fuel the Blackhawk there. It would stay on the ground for now. 'Coltan Overcast' and 'Cherry Bomb' would go up to fifty thousand feet. They would still keep watch specifically on them.

Cam didn't like getting played.


Young Allison didn't like the new turn of events. It seemed in retrospect it would have been better off to have acted earlier. It simply would have added to the mystery on the part of the Grays as to what actually occurred.

"We should've taken them out at the mine site." Young Allison said. "This would be over now."

Anna knew why they didn't.

"We hoped to get a few bigger fish to fry." Anna said.

When the vehicles split up, it signaled even more trouble to Young Allison.

"This thing reeks of an ambush in the making." Young Allison said.

Anna received word from CamNet of a similar opinion.

"Summer has come to the same conclusion you have." Anna said. "It's the same feeling about an ambush."

Young Allison wondered if maybe they shouldn't just cut their losses and take out the two vehicles where they were. It wasn't too late. They were in a very lightly populated area.

"Two of the drones can wrap this up now." Young Allison said.

Young Allison began to look over satellite images of where the two vehicles were at right now.


John was alone with Leticia.

"I just need to make sure this is what you want to do." John said.

Leticia faced John and stripped off her top.

"I've wanted this for a week." Leticia said.

Leticia could normally have anyone she wanted within thirty seconds.

John took in her perfect figure.

"You're incredibly beautiful." John said. "Your body is too."

Leticia liked it because 'Tony' thought she was pretty. Most of the men she needed to be with only looked at her body. They all wanted one thing. Well, it was three things really. She came over to him and kissed him. It was a loving kiss.

It was something John noticed with all the girls, especially the human ones. They all offered more than sex. It made everything better.

Leticia removed his clothes, as he removed the rest of hers. She threw back the covers and gently pushed John down onto the bed. She was used to servicing the men and women first. Few of them ever got her there. In fact, none of the men did unless she took over.

John pulled her down and rolled around on top of her.

"My turn…." John said.

Leticia was surprised. 'Tony' kissed her and then started down along her body. He hit all the high points along the way. She was even more surprised as he continued along down the inside of her one leg and back up on the other side. It was very tantalizing. No man ever did anything similar for her. They were all in too big of a hurry.

John liked how he could feel Leticia's anticipation build. He was more than ready but he wanted to please her. She'd already done it to him on the streetcar. He was going to reciprocate in kind.

He moved into position and looked up along her flat stomach through the valley of her voluptuous breasts. He liked everything he saw where he was at. He'd done the same with Mary and Laura. He thought everything was the most beautiful on Leticia.

Leticia's neck arched back as 'Tony' started in. He was the first male to stay with her until she made it in such a way. She wanted him bad right now.

She pulled him up. She was ready for more. She wanted it all.

"Take me." Leticia whispered in his ear.

John was about to make his move. He thought of his experience with the other girls.

"Do you want me to go slow?" John asked.

Leticia wondered what for. She could feel everything was good to go.

"Why?" Leticia asked.

John didn't want anyone to feel uneasy or to be uncomfortable.

"I want you to feel nice and have a good time." John said.

Leticia was very pleased to hear it. She thought it was very considerate. She wanted John even more now.

"No one ever asked me before. They just took what they wanted." Leticia said. "You're a keeper."

John did start out slow. Leticia seemed to really appreciate it. She soon urged him on. Their bodies became one in a short time. Things rapidly picked up.


Cammy was now in the Executive Suite, she listened to what went on in the Master Suite.

Mary was in the process of comparing Cammy, Camille and Ally.

"You know this is impossible, right." Mary said. "You three are identical everywhere."

Camille didn't think it was a big deal. There were a whole group of them who shared Allison's DNA.

"Don't look a 'gift horse' in the mouth." Camille said.

Ally giggled.

"It's not where she's looking." Ally said.

Cammy wanted to get the ball rolling. She wanted the half hour to pass by so the jet could take off. She then could take off with John. She wanted to give the girls something to contemplate.

"Would you believe there are more than ten of us who are physically identical?" Cammy asked.

Mary laughed. She thought Cammy was joking.

"Are they all here, or are some of them in the future?" Mary asked jokingly.

Cammy wanted to see what Mary 'knew'.

"They're in three different futures. Some were in a forth future for a while." Cammy said. "There's more here too, in the current timeline I mean."

The smile on Mary's face vanished. It was what Cammy said about the future which caught her attention. She needed to think about it for a few seconds. She needed to know more.

"Is there more than one future?" Mary asked. "Is it possible?"

Camille and Ally thought Cammy better back off.

"Anything is possible." Ally said.

The Metal girls went to work. The three identical cyborgs concentrated on Mary. She soon forgot about everything….


Laura wondered about a few things too.

"Where does this go from here?" Laura asked.

Sheila pointed at a plush sofa.

"Right there for starters." Sheila said.

Laura wanted to know more.

"I know both of you are 'special girls'." Laura said.

Hanna wanted to keep it simple.

"We may be special, but right now we're just girls." Hanna said.

Her statement made Laura wonder. If they were robots of some sort, even if they were a cyborg version, it seemed things could be changeable for something constructed, rather than something from an organic conception.

"Could you be men too, or as well?" Laura asked.

Sheila wanted to have some fun.

"What if I could?" Sheila asked. "I think I'd like to try it out and see what it's like."

Laura learned a little more about them. She'd read the news article on the internet.

"Do you have memory banks or something you can switch?" Laura asked. "I read some of the reports out there about the future and the rogue computer."

Sheila wanted to see how far she'd go.

"What did it say about the people who proclaimed, and talked about, information of such a nature?" Sheila asked. "Where did they end up?"

Laura read about a waitress who became an 'anti-technology terrorist', and the psychiatrist who'd treated her.

"They ended up in a mental institution." Laura said.

Sheila wanted Laura to think about everything for a moment.

"Would you want to end up there too?" Sheila asked.

Laura was aware what she believed was based on observation. It wasn't speculation.

"I think I've seen a few things." Laura said.

Hanna didn't think it made a difference to the authorities. Since they hadn't seen it themselves, the only conclusion they could draw was one thing. The person was insane.

"So did the people who were locked up." Hanna said.

Sheila pointed out the obvious.

"Nobody believed them." Sheila said.

Laura went to take out her phone.

Sheila repositioned herself. She wanted to refocus what was happening.

"There can't be any pictures of us." Sheila said. "You can take a picture of this. That's unless you want to do something else with it. It is right there for the taking."

Laura put her phone away. She was going to look for the article again. It could wait.

"I think 'something else' would be the better choice." Laura said.

All the girls did. They were on the 'party jet' after all. It didn't matter if it was sitting on the runway or not. It would take off soon enough. So would they. In fact, they would all take off before the jet did, multiple times.


Savannah knew she was headed for the 'edge'. Jesse told her Gail took her there and beyond. Gail needed to 'revive' Jesse more than a few times. Cameron was about to push her there. She tried to move or speak but she couldn't. Her vision was gone too….

"…The baby…." Savannah gasped.

Cameron immediately stopped and began to scan Savannah.

"I think I got carried away." Cameron said. "I'm sorry. I couldn't control myself."

Savannah was soon able to breathe and see again. She'd never gone so far before. It was as wonderful as it was frightening. She knew if she was going to go, it would be the way to go.

"It happens." Savannah said.

Cameron was caught up in the moment and was afraid it would all come to an end and really be an end.

"I wanted to show you how much I care about you." Cameron said. "I don't want to damage you or John's baby."

Savannah wanted a minor correction to Cameron's statement.

"It's Vanna's baby and how she wants to handle it." Savannah said. "I'll have one for you next."

Cameron knew Young Jesse would, as well as Claire. They were all 'booked up' right now.

"We'll cross the bridge when we get to it." Cameron said.

Savannah snuggled up close to Cameron again.

Cameron understood this act better now. It was just as special, even if nothing happened. Savannah wanted to teach her it was. She saw it was a 'lesson'. She snuggled close to Savannah.

She briefly wondered where John was at. He should have been with all the girls by now. It was too bad they didn't work the girls from the ship in. She looked at Savannah and smiled. He could have them. She'd found what she wanted. It was someone who loved her for what she was. She was a machine who masqueraded as a human female.

Cameron knew Savannah liked her physical attributes. But Savannah loved her for who she was on her program. Savannah loved the real things which made her who she was. Savannah loved her, even if she was a scary robot from the future.


Claire and Sarah finished up twice in Jesse's room.

Sarah was a little worried about the time.

"I need to go back." Sarah said. "I've been gone too long."

Claire thought Sarah said Kyle was 'good' with 'everything'.

"Does Kyle know?" Claire asked.

Sarah was with way more people than she'd planned on. It didn't bother her as much as she thought it would to have a variety of partners so quickly.

"He does, but not who or how many." Sarah said. "I think I got a little carried away."

Claire smiled. She believed it was a common feeling. It was also a good feeling.

"I thought it too at first when I started doing all this again." Claire said. "I realize now there is no such thing as too many when everyone wants 'a piece of the action'."

Sarah looked around for her robe. She found one.

"I thought you were going to say a piece of something else." Sarah said.

Claire giggled. She didn't see the need for any of the other girls to be compromised.

"It's the same thing in reality." Claire said. "You can tell him it's me if it comes up. There's no need to get specific."

Sarah was worried about the same thing Riley worried about. What happens if Kyle wanted 'a piece of the action'? She knew everyone needed to be treated fairly in a relationship. How could she deny him the same things she wanted? She knew he would want them as well.

"I'm worried he might want more." Sarah said. "All the other females are younger than I am."

Claire was instantly jazzed with the thought of not only the mother-son thing, but now the prospect of the father-son thing too. It could be wild. The mother-father thing crossed her mind as well. It could be preceded or followed by the son thing.

"I'll let you two work it out." Claire said. "I believe there are many different levels of love. At the end of the day we all know who we belong to. Sharing can go a long way."

Sarah wanted to ask her how far she would go, but didn't.

They kissed one more time and Sarah hurried off.

Claire figured she'd better straighten up the room. She picked her robe up off of the floor and put it on. When she looked in the mirror, she noticed it was blank. Her name wasn't on it. She looked at the door and hurried over to it. She looked out in the hall, but Sarah was already gone.

She was pretty sure Sarah took her robe. Then again, it could be from one of the other girls too since there'd been some room hopping. She didn't think anyone paid much attention to which robe they picked up when they'd left. It wasn't something they normally needed to think about. Their clothes usually didn't have names on them.

Claire was willing to give it a try if it came up. John showed her a whole new world of men. She was curious to see how someone else could do, or if it would be back to more of the same….

She really wondered why none of the men in her life ever thought about her needs before. The girls always did. John did.


Holly wasn't actually in standby when Riley checked her out. She didn't touch her, so it was no big deal. She would have allowed it if she would have.

Things were different now since the cruise. Everyone found a new freedom. The world was a bigger place to explore.

She waited until everyone was gone and checked on Precious again. She just stood there and watched her sleep. It looked so peaceful.

The expression would change every now and then on Precious' face.

Holly wondered what she would dream about. She wondered what it was like to dream.

She knew sometimes Allison woke up screaming in the night. It always made her combat alert. She would draw her M9 and Taser and search for a target before she realized what the problem was. She would calm Allison down and tell her it was just a dream.

Allison told her maybe what just happened was a dream, but what the dream was about was real. She'd lived it. It was real.

Holly hated the future.

She looked at Precious and wondered how old she would be before those things happened to her….

Her eyes glowed red and a glitch impulse shot through her left hand.


Jesse watched as the two cars split up and went in different directions. It wasn't what she'd expected to occur.

"Maybe my plan wasn't so good after all." Jesse said.

Summer thought otherwise. She knew there was more than one way to play the game.

"Maybe it was." Summer said. "I think we can try again in a few minutes. This time all the phones can work in the second vehicle and none of them in the first vehicle."

John Henry was worried about the private discussion between the two vehicles earlier.

"They may have been warned about the phones." John Henry said.

Summer thought it was worth a gamble. Few Grays were disciplined. There were always people who didn't follow the rules, even in a combat situation.

"Maybe one of them will 'blink'." Summer said.

John Henry waited until the two vehicles were a mile apart. He cut the phone in the first car and turned on the ones in the second car.

"Let's see what happens." John Henry said.

He'd quickly learned Summer was almost always right in exactly what she said people would do and when. It may only be in detail which something would be slightly different. He looked over at Summer and she winked at him. He quickly returned his attention back to his monitors.


The two cars of Grays split up. There was a contingency plan set up where they could trigger an ambush to be activated by passing through two locations first. It would all happen without any verbal communication.

The first car was the one which would trigger it. The second car would go elsewhere and run through it later on.

The second car was no longer in contact with the first vehicle. It made it the next target of the Resistance.

"Yo!" The first Gray said.

The second Gray was a little irritated at the outburst.

"Yo, what?" The second Gray asked.

The first Gray held his phone up and showed it to the second Gray.

"MY phone is back on." The first Gray said.

The third Gray quickly took out his phone and tried it as well.

"Mine is too." The third Gray said.

The second Gray checked. So was his.

"You heard what the Boss said." The second Gray said.

The first Gray thought there was a little too much drama involved in the current situation.

"What are we going to do?" The first Gray asked. "Will we drive around all night?"

The second Gray didn't want to take any chances. He saw what happened at the mine location. It seemed a little more was involved than an underground explosion for everyone to be gone.

"The Boss thought it was a set up." The second Gray said.

The third Gray wanted to mess with the second Gray. He really wouldn't mind an evening snack either.

"I can order a pizza and see what happens." The third Gray said.

The second Gray shook his head and looked at the third Gray with disgust. He really wondered where they'd obtained some of these clowns at.

"Quit screwing around, Callahan." The second Gray said. "We'll stick to the plan."

The third Gray didn't like the rebuke.

He waited a few minutes and then sent a text message to his pal back at their base. His pal said they were about to send out another team to see what happened. He gave his pal a brief account of what they'd found, which was nothing.

'Don't tell anyone I contacted you.' The third Gray typed.

'The Metal head would probably flip if I did.' The pal typed.

'We'll run through the ambush site. We should be back in two hours.' The third Gray typed.

'Roger that, bro.' The pal typed.

'Did they score any fresh skirt while we were out?' The third Gray typed.

'No. Maybe you can pick one up on the way back.' The pal typed.

'I'll see if I can get Keith to drive by a park, or a bar, if we make it into town.' The third Gray typed.

'There's a homeless camp by the tall bridge over the dry river. You can score a one there.' The pal typed.

'Most of those sluts are used up no matter what age they are.' The third Gray typed.

'Used up is better than 'Rosie'.' The pal typed.

'Ten four to that, bro. Gotta go. See you soon.' The third Gray typed.


John Henry, the drones and CamNet all monitored the conversation. They got a good fix on the location where the message was sent to. It worked just like Jesse and Summer said it would.

John Henry looked over at Summer.

"We just hit pay dirt." John Henry said.

Jesse looked at zoomed in images of the two cars.

"Did you find their base?" Jesse asked.

John Henry came up with a location.

"I don't know if it's their base." John Henry said. "There's a drone headed for it right now. It's a start."


Young Allison thought it was time to act. They could eliminate the two cars first. They could go after the building next. Since they knew the destination, there was no need to delay.

"We can hit both of those cars with 'metal hail' and take them out." Young Allison said. "We can always use a missile too."

Anna didn't want to jump the gun.

"We need to worry about containment of the incident scene too." Anna said.

Young Allison checked the location of the Gray's cars on a map overlay. She requested drone images and used daylight satellite photos.

"I have a solution for 'car one'." Young Allison said.

Anna looked at where Young Allison indicated.

"It could be risky." Anna said.

Young Allison thought it was a good plan.

"Have CamNet initiate it immediately." Young Allison said. "Inform John Henry what's about to happen."

Anna didn't want Young Allison to overstep.

"We need to use caution." Anna said. "You need to remember the chain of command."

Young Allison didn't think there was one now.

"Who do we need to ask?" Young Allison asked. "John is 'plowing' the three girls from the ship, and probably half of the Metal girls there with them. Cameron is busy as well. I will say Savannah is justified in a much needed break."

Anna thought about it.

"Are you saying the Young sisters are running the show?" Anna asked.

Young Alison felt Summer and her hadn't lost sight of the goal of the Resistance.

"We're on the mission." Young Allison said. "We're the ones following it."


Summer received word directly from CamNet of Young Allison's plan. She checked the drone images and satellite maps. She immediately signed on. It was a sound plan. John Henry was notified at that point.

"The Young bunker has a solution to one of the vehicles." John Henry said.

Jesse watched Summer at work. She looked at dozens of images, all at the same time and one after another. She knew Summer was gifted.

"What is it?" Jesse asked.

Summer filled her in.

"What about the other vehicle and the building?" Jesse asked.

Summer based her plan for the second vehicle on Young Allison's plan.

"I'm working on it for the second car. My plan is based on timing and traffic management." Summer said. "Those are all things we can control."

Jesse listened to her plan. It seemed rather elaborate to make everything work as intended.

"You can do all of it?" Jesse asked.

Summer checked the location of the second car.

"Based on their conversation to 'nab' a homeless female I can." Summer said. "I just need to make sure it's before they pick a female up. I don't want her killed with them."

Summer filled John Henry and Jesse in on 'car two'.

John Henry notified CamNet and the Young bunker.

It only left the building to deal with.


The security chief wondered if the females were Terminators. Who else could make two identical head shots? The control panel the technicians were using started to hum. He saw an 'opening' on the wall where the two technicians lay. It started a few feet up off the floor with jagged edges and soon formed into a rectangle which looked like a doorway.

He could hear an electrical noise come out of the opening itself. It was louder than the hum of the control panel.

He could hear an HK Track returning. He still didn't know the location of the shooter, or shooters.

The security chief didn't think the HK Track could spot him if he remained where he was. He was pretty sure the shooter knew exactly where he was. It seemed his best course of action was to remain where he was at for now.


The female Fanatic wasn't ready to leave yet. She wanted to make sure all of the Grays were down. It included the ones outside. They soon heard an 'electrical hum' from the area where the technicians were working.

"It sounds like the technicians are at it again." Jill said.

The female Fanatic wasn't sure exactly what they were doing. It seemed to be advanced technology of some sort. It was beyond her future, whatever it was. She didn't know if they would be able to capture it or not. She figured her best course of action would be to demolish it. They still carried several bombs with them.

"I want to destroy it." The female Fanatic said. "If it's related to Skynet, it can't be anything good."

Since the lights were back on, they could see around the interior of the building. It was very large. They couldn't access very much of it from the catwalk. They could see all around inside of it though. They currently didn't see anyone moving other than the two HK Tracks. One of them was headed back towards the front.

"Do you see anyone at all?" Jill asked.

The female Fanatic heard a metallic 'clang'. It was very faint. She looked down in the direction of the sound. She spotted something she didn't want to see.

"There's a man coming up the ladder." The female Fanatic whispered.

Jill held her Beretta in her hand.

"Is he coming after us?" Jill whispered.

The female Fanatic could see he didn't carry a weapon in his hand. There was one stuck behind his back in his pants though. He would be able to reach it very quickly and still hang on to the ladder with one hand.

"I don't think he knows we're up here." The female Fanatic whispered. "I think he's trying to get away from the HK Tracks. I'm going to crawl over to where he'll come up at."

Jill thought it was a good idea. If he made it up onto the catwalk, he would spot both of them relatively quickly. If they were going to have some type of a shootout, it should happen before the man was able to take a shot at both of them.

"Can you shoot him before he comes up?" Jill whispered.

The female Fanatic hoped to be able to use her knife.

"I'll try to stab him in the neck if I can." The female Fanatic whispered. "I think he's going to be a little surprised to see me when his head pops up through the opening."

The female Fanatic considered taking her top off. If the man were to see her topless, it would further delay his response time. He would attempt to check out the 'goods' before he reacted as he should.

Jill watched Jackie crawl towards where the ladder intersected the catwalk. She heard a metallic noise behind her. She turned around. She could see there was another man coming up on the same ladder they'd come up on. She looked at Jackie, but she was too far away to call to her. She was going to need to act on her own. She was going to need to hurry too.

The female Fanatic and Jill both headed towards targets attempting to reach the catwalk in different areas. It didn't seem to be a coordinated effort. It was one more of survival.


Lena and Tina could hear one of the HK Tracks coming. It wasn't coming towards them. It was headed to where the 'humming' noise was at. There was still some minigun fire on the other side of the building.

The humming noise from the area where the technicians had been working continued to increase in volume.

Lena began to monitor her functions.

"If the spatial portal starts to malfunction, we may be too close." Lena said.

Tina didn't want to be knocked off line either.

"We can have a drone hit the location with a missile." Tina said.

Lena recalled the experience of when the other portal the Resistance team encountered began to malfunction, it didn't matter what they did. It continued to draw everything inside of it. It occurred even after the power source was destroyed from their side of the portal.

"We need to attempt to shut it down first." Lena said.

They could hear the HK Track approach.

"Maybe we should let them attempt to shut it down." Tina said. "They may know more about how it works than we do."

Lena knew both of the technicians were terminated. They were the ones who'd terminated them.

"Hopefully there are others who know something about it." Lena said. "I don't believe there are too many left. There's still one man over by the other two we just killed."

They remained motionless as the HK Track passed near them. It arrived in front of the portal. It quickly attempted to back away but stalled.

"I think it's stuck." Tina said. "It can't move away."

The minigun fired into the opening until its ammunition ran out.

"I think you're right. I'm starting to feel the effects myself now." Lena said.

Lena and Tina decided to fall back. They stashed the deactivated Terminator between a few crates and covered him over. The electrical noise continued to grow in volume.


XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Temporal Mission:

Past Timeline:

November 25 1963

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX


Young Allison and Cameron proceeded to try each of the different flavors. They tried all 31 Flavors, flavors.

Cameron was very pleased to add all of the information to the database. Some of the types of ice cream set off higher levels of warnings in her HUD than others did.

The attendant was ready to move things along. It was the first time he'd watched anyone else sample all of the flavors. He'd done so the first week when he started. It wasn't all at one time though.

"Well, it's all of them." Kevin said. "What would you like your cones to be?"

Young Allison was as pleased as Cameron was. Hers was for a different reason. She was able to try all the different flavors. She knew there were some she liked more than others. It seemed all ice cream was good, some of it was just better.

"I'll just have a single scoop of 'sticky chewy chocolate'." Young Allison said. "Not too much."

Cameron thought Young Allison would have had at least a double. She monitored Young Allison to see which flavors she liked more than the others. She decided to get a scoop of another flavor Young Allison liked. She would give it to her later on.

"I'll have a single scoop of 'chocolate peanut butter cup'." Cameron said. "Not too much."

The attendant prepared two cones. He gave them the sugar cones instead of the plain cones. He handed the cones to the girls.

"Here you go." Kevin said. "One 'sticky chewy chocolate' and one 'chocolate peanut butter cup'."

The girls both thanked him.

The attendant went ahead and rang up the bill. He put the ten dollar bill in the register and took out a five dollar bill.

"Here's your change." Kevin said. "We appreciate your business. Please come again."

Young Allison looked at Cameron.

Cameron nodded.

Young Allison slid the five dollar bill back to the attendant.

"This is your tip for helping us and being so nice about it." Young Allison said.

The attendance eyes opened wide like saucers. He'd only ever been given a tip a few times. It was usually only a nickel or a dime.

"Wow!" Kevin said. "Is it for real?"

Cameron flashed her million dollar smile.

"It's for real." Cameron said. "We appreciate your assistance."

The attendant was overjoyed. It was more than several hours of his salary. He would be able to visit the Iron Horse hobby shop on Sherman Way, or the Hobby Hamlet on DeSoto. It wouldn't take him long to ride his bike to either of them.

"Thank you." Kevin said. "I really mean it."

The girls left and headed for the panel truck.

The manager came out of his office when the girls left.

The attendant looked at his boss.

"They gave me a nice tip." Kevin said.

The manager looked at the girls as they moved along the front of the store.

"Those two twins are really something." The manager said. "I won't be surprised if we see them on the big screen or on television in the near future. They have what it takes."

The manager couldn't help but think about Marilyn Monroe. He thought she'd deserved better than what she ended up with. He thought about the funeral he saw earlier on TV. It seemed to him everyone got what they deserved in the end, one way or another.


Cameron handed her ice cream Young Allison.

"I'll drive." Cameron said. "You can have both cones."

Young Allison was happy to have both flavors. She didn't want to seem greedy inside of the store. She also knew it would be a challenge to drive and shift, while holding her cone. Cameron solved the problem for her.

"Thanks." Young Allison said. "I'll hold one over every now and then so you can take a few licks on it."

Cameron quickly looked over at Young Allison.

Young Allison suppressed a giggle.

"You know I meant the ice cream." Young Allison said.

Cameron opened the door on the passenger side for Young Allison to get in. She fastened her safety belt for her. She closed it when she was done. She went around to the driver's side and climbed in. She looked in the back to make sure their new cargo was undisturbed. Everything was as they'd left it. She'd kept an eye on things while they were inside the ice cream shop.

She fired up the 292. She pulled out onto Topanga Canyon Boulevard when it was clear.

'Queen Of The Hop', by 'Bobby Darin', played on the radio.

Young Allison spotted some nursery plants over on the west side of the street a short time after they left the ice cream shop behind. There was a small sign.

"Those are for Green Thumb." Young Allison said. "I saw it when we passed by it on Sherman Way. It's another establishment which is still in the same location with the same name. I'm sure the actual ownership of both 31 Flavors and Green Thumb have changed more than a few times."

Cameron was aware many businesses came and went. Sometimes the name died, other times it was revived under different ownership.

"Change is the only constant." Cameron said.

Young Alison spotted a park as they neared Strathern Street.

"There's Lanark Park." Young Allison said. "There's hardly anything in it. There's a sign on it which says it's called 'Orcutt Park'."

Cameron understood why the name was changed.

"It was the name of it before they changed it to the street name on the northern side of it." Cameron said. "There's a second Orcutt Park on Roscoe down past Ramo-Wooldridge and the 106 Fire Station. They will eventually call it Orcutt Ranch. We drove by it earlier. It was where you saw the orange grove."

Young Allison held both ice creams over towards Cameron.

Cameron took a taste of each one.

"I need to finish these before they melt." Young Allison said.

Cameron reached over and took one from her.

"I'll help you out." Cameron said.

Young Allison finished the chocolate peanut butter cup ice cream cone.

"I see Zodys." Young Allison said. "It's in a very large building. It looks even bigger than White Front."

Cameron handed the other cone back to Young Allison.

"The large department stores were all the precursors to Sprawl-Mart." Cameron said. "Once Zodys goes out of business, eventually the Ralphs across the street will move into the location. It will be known as Giant. It will eventually turn back into Ralphs for a few years. Vons will move in once they close. Once Vons gives up the location, it will become an ethnic food store. They will have plenty of business. The entire side of it is divided into smaller businesses. McRonald's winds up in the parking lot near the corner along with several other establishments."

Young Allison spotted a sign on a building on the right hand side as they neared the intersection with Roscoe Boulevard. It looked like a big shoe.

"That's a fancy sign the Wooden Shoe has." Young Allison said. "It says it's a cafe. It looks more like a bar. I bet it's a pickup joint."

Cameron was aware it would last for a number of years and eventually move to another location on Mason Avenue in Chatsworth.

"People are always looking for a little more." Cameron said. "Everyone thinks the grass is always greener on the other side of the hill. When they get there, it isn't. They can't always make it back to their side of the hill either."

Young Allison looked over at the Ralphs market as they crossed Roscoe Boulevard. There was a Thrifty nearby it.

"I know Thrifty and Thriftimart are two different businesses." Young Allison said. "Thrifty was known for good ice cream. The brand still exists at the Rite Aid stores which replaced it."

Cameron was aware, where there usually was a Ralphs market, during this time period, there was also a Thrifty located in the same parking area. The current location was no exception.

"Eventually all of the stores on the northwest corner will be torn down. A giant home improvement store will be built there." Cameron said. "Remember, change is the only constant."

She decided to make a right at the first street past Roscoe Boulevard. It was Schoenborn Street.

Young Allison spotted the sign for the Holiday Theater on the east side of Topanga Canyon Boulevard as they made the turn onto Schoenborn Street.

"I see there's a 'walk in' theater close by." Young Allison said.

Cameron looked at the Marquee.

"You have a choice of four different movies to see between the Canoga Drive-In and the Holiday Theater walk in." Cameron said.

Young Allison wasn't sure if she wanted to see a movie yet.

'Big Bad John', by 'Jimmy Dean', play on the radio.

Cameron felt a slight glitch impulse when the song began to play. More than once, she'd been in a similar situation as Big John at the bottom of the mine. More than once, it wasn't just her. Savannah was with her. They'd both almost terminated.

Young Allison could see Cameron was affected by the song. She knew what she equated it to.

"It's not a real story, Cameron." Young Allison said. "It's just a song. It doesn't have to be about anything or be real."

Cameron looked over at Young Allison and smiled. She knew Young Allison was correct. The character the song was based around was an actual person who the singer met during a play one time. He was a very large individual by the name of John. The singer nicknamed him Big John. He was able to write a back story around it and create a hit song. The singer also was known later in his life for his various sausage products.

"Everything's fine." Cameron said.

Young Allison held up the ice cream cone for Cameron to try another taste of.

They stopped at Owensmouth Avenue for the stop sign.

Since there was no traffic, Cameron waited a moment while she tried some more of the cone. She handed it back to Young Allison. She proceeded down the street.

Young Alison spotted a car dealership on the right side of the street as they continued on.

"There's a lot of new cars right there." Young Allison said. "I see there's a Ford dealership across the street. Do you know if it's where the Falcon and the Galaxie were acquired at?"

Cameron felt another slight glitch impulse. She wasn't sure how any of the vehicles were acquired. Since the Falcon and the Galaxie were new, they may have been acquired there.

"I'm not sure." Cameron said. "It seems most likely."

Young Allison spotted another large store on the left hand side of the street. She noticed something very unique about the front of it.


A Piece Of The Action

No two people are the same
Neither should be an acquisition
When one treats the other like it is
It's going to create tension

Hindsight is never twenty-twenty
There's a lot of distortion
It's common for things to be
Blown out of proportion

Two grow further apart not closer
It's all subject to erosion
Some will move things forward
Others seek to widen the division

Once a plateau has been reached
There is no more evolution
Both speak without hearing
Things are lost in the translation

They all stay in the game
It matters not the competition
It's more than just the goal
Everyone wants a piece of the action

Nobody