Chapter 1580
Lower The Airstair
Jim, Bob, Derek, and Kyle did a 'drive by' of the Skynet related address. The first building looked 'cold' right now. There was no visual indication to signify a positive hit. They decided to go to the second address. They knew there was a van they needed to find. They hoped it was at the other building, or inside one of the two buildings. Wherever the van was, there was at least one or more Gray with it.
Bob neared the next location. He wanted to make sure everyone was ready to inspect it. There were things visible at ground level which weren't always visible from a drone.
"When I make a right turn at the next light, the building will be across the street." Bob said. "It's on the west corner of the first street after we turn."
Bob made the turn and drove past the building. There were no vehicles present. It was what the drone images indicated as well before they arrived.
Derek didn't like the inactivity. He wanted to take a more aggressive approach.
"It looks like a bust." Derek said. "We need to take a closer look."
Kyle was up for it as well. He didn't want to lose track of the Grays. They were bound to scatter, or fall back to a different position.
"Since they got hit last night, we need to see what contingencies they took." Kyle said. "We don't want the trail to go cold."
Bob was pretty sure CamNet scanned both locations with a drone the night before, or in the early hours of the morning. No action was taken at that time. Both structures were still standing. It was clear they would need to have some boots on the ground. They might as well start where they were at.
"Let's check this one out. We can go back to the other one afterwards." Bob said. "There might not be anything to find."
Derek and Kyle were ready for some action.
Bob parked a block away. He was with Derek. They would approach through the alley. Jim and Kyle were let out on the other side of the street. They would approach from the front.
It was decided the team who conducted the entry from the rear would go in first. They were concealed from everything.
Bob and Derek paused at the building next to the target building. They observed it for a short time before they decided to make their move.
Derek didn't see any point in delaying further.
"Let's go." Derek said.
Bob wanted to take the lead.
"Stay behind me as much as possible." Bob said.
Derek understood he needed to use caution.
"I know the rules." Derek said.
Bob approached the rear door. There was a roll up door as well. They would skip it for now.
John Henry could see things were about to be taken a step further than planned. He informed them they were about to expand beyond a recon mission.
Derek told him they were going to do a recon of the interior. It was more a play of words than what was about to happen.
The team all wore a windbreaker over their vests. They each carried a Taser, M9 and Thermite grenades. Bob and Derek carried two M4 carbines in a duffel bag. The bag was open and ready for them to grab the carbines.
Derek wanted to be prepared. He reached in the duffel bag. He handed Bob an M4 and took the other one for himself.
Bob listened outside the rear door. There was no sound from inside. He pushed on the rear door. It popped open. He went inside followed by Derek.
Jim and Kyle waited out in the front in case anyone ran out. They didn't. Not yet anyway.
Derek moved in behind Bob. They'd entered through an office area. There were scattered papers on the ground and empty file cabinets. They moved through the building.
Bob entered the work area. There were various machines. They were all old and well used. There was no finished product or metal waiting to be worked. They checked two more rooms and opened the front door. Kyle and Jim entered.
"What do we have?" Kyle asked.
Derek pointed with his M4.
"It looks like a whole lot of nothing." Derek said.
They checked for any surveillance equipment or booby traps. They didn't spot either.
Jim looked around in the office.
"Someone left here in a hurry." Jim said.
Bob checked some of the metal tailings by a drill press. It wasn't what he wanted to find. It did indicate the nature of what occurred there.
"These are Coltan shavings." Bob said. "Most likely it was for some type of HK equipment."
Kyle and Derek collected the scattered papers on the floor. They found monitors, but no towers with the hard drives in them. It was a bust overall.
"I don't think this place has been active recently." Bob said.
Jim looked at the papers.
"Nothing here is dated for this year." Jim said.
The best they could determine was someone slept there more as a watchman, than as an active working location. Either way, there was no one there. There was no indication of a 'comfort bunk' either. It gave them one less thing to worry about.
They left behind a few surveillance devices. There was one left in the rear alley. There was one which covered the front from the outside across the street.
They returned to the SUV. They headed back to the first location.
Ajax, a Skynet Terminator, was sure the building he was in was under some type of surveillance. He decided to return to his building to see what happened there. He took one last look around the building and made his way back to his vehicle.
He wasn't sure why the building wasn't set on fire or destroyed in some other way. Maybe it was because whoever took the equipment, along with the two boxcars, hoped they would continue to use the building. It seemed highly unlikely to him. Maybe whoever took the boxcars planned to use the building for themselves. He really wondered what happened to the boxcars.
Ajax drove away from the warehouse with the railroad siding. He continuously checked for a tail behind him. He thought about heading directly for the new location. He still wanted to check their other building. He was sure it was compromised.
He parked a block away from it. He happened to be one street closer than CamNet's Terminator, who was currently inside of the building, parked. He made his way through the property behind their building in exactly the same spot as CamNet's Terminator used. He made his approach to the building in an almost identical manner.
Ajax didn't appear to have a clue he was under observation from a drone the entire time. He continued to approach the building from the rear.
Earlier:
CamNet's Terminator determined there was nothing of consequence inside of the building. He set about repositioning the explosives. He originally considered placing them around the entry points. They would most likely take down a human target if he did. He placed them in a location to bring down the building. He used the roof access hatch to go back onto the roof. He replaced the skylight window back into its frame, and closed the metal edge back over it to hold it in place. He returned back in through the roof access hatch, down into the building.
He continuously monitored what Ajax was up to in the other building from the surveillance cameras. He knew he was on his way back to where he was at. He originally thought he was going to go to the other location where the Grays went. He became a little concerned when Ajax almost parked on the same street his SUV was on. He didn't. He'd parked one street closer.
He wasn't sure how Ajax would attempt to enter the building. If he thought it was compromised, he would have to think the doors were now wired and booby trapped. He would need an alternate way in to prevent being terminated.
CamNet's Terminator continued to watch the drone image to see where Ajax would attempt to make entry. He planned to bring him down once he entered the building.
Young Allison, Anna, and Mel left the family at the apartment and departed.
Anna looked at Young Allison after they'd entered the SUV. She needed to give her a 'reminder'.
"Is what happened what you had in mind?" Anna asked. "There was still one more person who ended up dead."
Young Allison didn't think any of the deaths so far today were a problem. They were all people who deserved to die. They were guilty by their own actions. They were people who needed to be held accountable for their crimes. The justice system wasn't willing to do it. She was.
"Tell me none of them earned it." Young Allison said.
Anna looked at her with a straight face.
"None of them earned it." Anna said.
Young Allison made a face at her, and Anna smiled.
"I understand your point of view. You need to understand the whole world is messed up with people like this." Anna said. "There's no way to fix it. What Skynet does in the future, will only make it worse for certain groups."
Young Allison did know how things worked. She wasn't pleased with them.
"I do know. If we can save a few good people, I don't care if a few bad people die." Young Allison said. "How many other people would they hurt going forward? Who is willing to stop the damage? If not now, when? If not us, who?"
Anna knew it was a problem too. Young Allison still couldn't 'fix' everything. Every action seemed to produce a reaction. There was no way to know what the reaction would be. The potential was out there for it to still happen.
"You can only fix so much." Anna said. "You need to worry about repercussions too."
Young Allison felt confident in CamNet's ability to back her play and 'cover up' anything which needed to be covered up.
"CamNet will assist me." Young Allison said. "She knows what I want. I know what she wants."
Anna shot Young Allison a dirty look. It appeared to be an overt sexual overture from Young Allison to make CamNet more compliant.
"It's not how things are going to work." Anna said.
Young Allison decided to back off some.
"It's just a general statement." Young Allison quickly said.
They both knew it wasn't.
Young Allison didn't like the fact the woman was 'hit on' several times. The fact someone actually tried to take her daughter was even worse. The park was a problem. They encountered multiple problems there. They also conducted a number of terminations related to it. It didn't seem to make a difference. Like a bad penny, the trouble always seemed to show back up. A park was supposed to be a 'safe' place for people to go and enjoy themselves. She was determined to get it cleaned up. She was sure there would need to be additional terminations.
"I want to get the riff raff out of the park once and for all." Young Allison said.
Anna doubted it was possible. More than one thing contributed to the problems there.
"Things which create the problems are deep rooted issues." Anna said.
Young Allison saw it differently. She simply told it like it was.
"The problems stem from the fact the community leaders don't have the stones to enforce the laws already on the books." Young Allison said. "There are laws to prevent most of these things from taking hold. It's clear the homeless problem, and the gang problems, are the basis for Scavengers in the future. They're both segments which operate as separate societies outside of the norm."
Anna knew Young Allison was about to make some bad choices.
"Think on this before you give any new 'orders'." Anna said.
Young Allison wanted females to be safe when they went to the park, or out for a walk. She had a protection Detail for herself. She knew Cameron eliminated people who'd 'looked' at her too many times, or for too long. Cameron never said anything other than, 'I wouldn't worry about them.', when she asked about them. It didn't take her long to figure out what actually happened to them.
"I'll think about it." Young Allison said.
The female Fanatic and Jill continued to search the room. So far they hadn't been able to find anything.
Jill thought it was a little strange they hadn't.
"I would think they would want to know exactly where we're at, and what we're doing, before they came to get us." Jill said.
The female Fanatic tended to agree.
"I think they're linked into the security cameras inside of the building." The female Fanatic said. "They can observe who comes and goes."
The female Fanatic and Jill tried to decide what their next move would be.
Tina and Lena were instructed by CamNet not to terminate the homeless man if possible. They began to question him as to what happened to the men in the white van.
The homeless man was clearly terrified he'd just been accosted by two very strong females. He didn't think they were the police. The police no longer bothered any of the homeless people. They allowed them to do whatever they wanted and run free throughout the city.
"Let go of me." The homeless man said.
Lena wanted some answers.
"Tell us where the men from the white van went." Lena said. "We know when you're lying, or telling the truth. Don't test us. Don't try to get us angry. You won't like us when we're angry."
The man was clearly scared.
"They said they'd kill me, man." The homeless man said.
Tina was tired of the games. It was time to do a little Terminator persuasion. She grabbed the homeless man's neck and began to choke him.
"I'll terminate you right now if you don't tell me the truth." Tina said.
The stench of the man's hovel just got worse. It appeared he'd soiled himself.
Once the homeless man understood he was about to die, he decided to tell them the truth. He gave them a complete description as to what occurred. He also said they paid him twenty dollars to lie if anyone asked.
The two Terminators were satisfied the man told him everything he knew. They sent the information out to CamNet. She'd monitored the interrogation as well.
Lena wanted to make sure of their next action.
"Do you want him terminated?" Lena asked.
The homeless man's eyes widened. He was still massaging his throat.
"Hey, man, I told you everything." The homeless man said.
Tina gave him a angry look.
"You took too long." Tina said.
CamNet instructed them to let him go.
Lena glared at the man.
"You're lucky, this time." Lena said.
The drones already picked up the vehicle the two men entered. It was a black SUV. It was currently headed in the same direction the white van was headed. It was waiting under the overpass for the white van to arrive. The homeless man had been on his way back to his hovel when the white van pulled up. It was the only reason there'd been any interaction between them. They'd discussed whether they should kill him or not as well. He told them he didn't see anything.
Tina straightened the man's rumpled collar.
"Thank you for your assistance." Tina said. "You will remain at this location for ten minutes."
She stood and moved away from the man. She started to walk away.
Lena stood as well. She reached in her pocket and pulled out some money. She handed several hundred dollars to the man.
The homeless man was a little leery to take it. He was sure there was some type of catch, or something bad would happen if he took it.
"Thanks." The homeless man said. "What's the money for?"
Lena started to walk away. She tossed the homeless man the keys for the van.
"It's for gas money." Lena said. "My advice is, if you're going to keep the van, you need to fill up the tank, and drive as far away from here as possible. You might want to leave it as well. Your life will be in danger as long as you're in possession of it."
Lena continued to walk away.
The man looked a little bewildered.
"Were you really going to kill me?" The homeless man asked.
Lena paused and looked back.
"Affirmative, your termination would have been your own fault." Lena said. "All we asked for was the truth. It wasn't so hard was it? If you would have lied again, it's you who would have sealed your own fate. It's just that simple."
Lena and Tina returned to the sidewalk and continued under the overpass back towards the gas station where the SUV was parked. They checked behind them to see if the homeless man attempted to follow them, or see where they were going. He didn't.
The drone followed the target vehicle from altitude. The windows were dark on it. It was unable to determine who was in the black SUV. It was possible the men may have transferred to a third vehicle already. They would have to know the homeless man would roll over on anyone who questioned him. There was a strong possibility they would return to the white van and question the man to see if anyone inquired about it.
"Do you think they'll come back for the white van?" Lena asked.
Tina wasn't sure. Everything which occurred was highly unusual.
"I think we're being played in more ways than one." Tina said. "You know if anyone questions the homeless man, he's going to tell them everything."
Lena was pretty sure the homeless man would leave the area. She'd given him five hundred dollars. It was what CamNet recommended she do. The homeless man had enough money to move on. If he waited around for the Grays to return, his termination would be on him.
CamNet understood it was something Savannah would want her to do to prevent someone from dying because of their interaction with them. She was pretty sure Young Allison wouldn't give the man a second chance.
Tina placed a surveillance device to observe the white van. If anyone returned to it, they would be able to see who it was, and know when it happened.
Lena and Tina returned to their SUV. They began a loose pursuit of the black SUV. They watched the drone images of it. They monitored the surveillance camera of the white van as well.
Tricia and Leticia sat naked side by side. Tricia basically told Leticia her life's story.
Sheila planned to access those files as soon as he could. She was sent a message by CamNet directly to her com. She was to go to the rear galley and make sure everything was 'buttoned up' properly. She wondered what the mystery guest was up to.
She excused herself and went out into the passageway. She saw Cammy and Mary in the lounge section past the other rooms. She turned in the other direction. She felt the pressure change and noise level increase. It was clear someone opened the rear door of the jet. They were still at a low altitude so it wasn't a big deal.
The rear door closed as she approached. She checked it to make sure everything was secure, it was. There was a control panel there now which could raise or lower the airstair. It wasn't there before. The regular control was outside the rear door. Now there was one inside as well. CamNet informed her she would raise the airstair when she was instructed to do so later on. It would be in about thirty minutes.
Tricia heard everything Sheila did. She was 'CamNet' after all, at least a small part of her. Right now she was content to be with Leticia. She unbuckled her seat belt and moved to the bed. She opened it up. Leticia followed her.
"Are you ready for this?" Tricia asked.
Leticia was more than ready, but it was all still hard to take in. There was really someone who looked like her and knew a lot about her.
"Yes." Leticia said. "I think so. This is what I've always wanted."
Tricia moved close to Leticia. She reset her programming and blocked her involvement with Savannah, Young Allison, and Leticia's experiences from the 'Neural Interface'. As 'Tricia', she was a 'new person'.
"I've never been with anyone before." Tricia whispered.
Leticia wondered about what she 'knew' about her.
"You know a lot about me." Leticia said. "I've been with a lot of people. Most of them were female."
Tricia wanted to be specific.
"Those files are all blocked." Tricia said. "You'll be my first. I personally have never done this before."
Leticia was thrilled to hear it. She'd never been with a female before on her first experience. She'd been with plenty of the neighborhood boys on their first experience though. It wasn't really her choice. She did like the idea they'd remember her. None of them lasted for more than two minutes. She was just a receptacle for them. She was glad to be away from there.
She ran away when she was a teenager. It didn't really help things much. She met an older woman at a shelter. She took her into one of the back rooms. After a short time together, the older woman told her she had potential. She told her she would help her to focus her life. She took her under her wing and 'trained' her to be a submissive. It was all another story. She hoped Tricia didn't get into it. She needed to focus on what was about to happen now.
"I'd love to share with you." Leticia said. "I'd be honored to be your first. I really mean it, especially since you're – me."
They were side by side on the bed now as the 727 continued to climb. The pressure change, and the sound level increase, only lasted about fifteen seconds. It was already forgotten.
Right now they stared into each other's eyes. They both thought the other one had beautiful eyes. The kisses started out slow and sweet. They grew in intensity…. It was clear both of them liked everything they touched as well as everything they did. How couldn't they?
Cammy saw everything was under control at the rear of the jet. She led Mary to the Executive Suite. The jet still climbed. It was a gentle angle. Young Jesse took it easy.
She saw Sheila at the back and figured she would return to the Master Suite. Right now it was Mary and her. She really liked being with Mary.
Mary didn't really know what the 'special girls' were, but they really did seem to be some kind of machines. It was very hard to believe. She'd seen them semi-incapacitated from some kind of an energy field. It didn't affect her or the other human girls. At least she hoped it didn't.
She might want to have kids at some future date. It wasn't really on her mind. 'Tony' was the first male she'd been with in years. She was very pleased by the experience. Most of the guys she'd been with before didn't take the time to give her a finish. They just 'did their business', and that was it. It was very unfulfilling for her.
Now she was with Cammy. She couldn't tell her apart from Cam or Camille. There was still 'Barbara' too. No one said much about her. It seemed she was 'Tony's' main 'squeeze'. She actually seemed to be the one who was in control. It was clear the other 'special girls' all worried about her. They seemed a little worried about what she would do to them.
The thing she could tell about Cammy was, she seemed extra interested in her. It was fine with her. Cammy really tried to please her. She wasn't sure why.
Cammy knew Cameron was going to take Savannah away from her. She'd known it from the beginning of her 'creation'. She was a 'place holder'. It wasn't supposed to be anything more than that. She wanted another human lover if it happened. She knew she couldn't accept being 'alone'. Sheila and Ally were fine for sex, but she wanted what Savannah gave her. She wanted the love of a human female. Leticia was already taken by Sheila. She liked how Mary was a little more than Laura. She would take whichever one of them who would have her. Laura was just as beautiful.
She tried to show Mary the love Savannah showed her. She hoped to win Mary's heart. She hoped one of them would choose her. Like Cameron, she wanted to be chosen. It was much more special to be chosen than assigned. She didn't want to feel like a 'has been' and needed to pick up whatever scraps were left. She wasn't a dog. Then again, a dog seemed very happy to find whatever leftovers there were. It didn't matter how small they were. She did notice they were very thorough to get all of them. Maybe it was all a matter of perspective.
Sheila was about to return to the Master Suite when CamNet told her to give them some alone time first. She could join Mary and Cammy if she wanted.
She decided to listen outside the door instead.
It seemed like something beautiful for both of them. They could compare everything they wanted, in whatever way they wanted to compare it. Everything could be viewed from different angles just to see what 'they' looked like.
Sheila moved down the hall a little way. She wanted to hear Cammy and Mary with one ear, and Leticia and Tricia with the other ear. She figured since she was naked, she might as well finish when each of the four of them did. It seemed fair to her. It at least kept her busy.
Minutes ago:
Young Jesse climbed to five thousand feet. She was told about the pressure change. She was glad they got it over with now. She knew something was up, but not in detail. She continued a shallow climb. It was about as different from the one Cammy made earlier as could be. She was behind the controls of a much larger plane and she didn't want to push it.
Camille-Hanna laid out the new flight plan.
Young Jesse didn't think it was a big deal. It was a small runway anyway.
"I guess we won't be landing in Tahoe after all." Young Jesse said. "It's not a big place."
Hanna-Camille was informed of the HALO event which would take place from the rear of the jet. She would be with Young Jesse on the controls as they slowed at altitude and lowered the airstair. The 727 was a very stable platform. What they were going to do was outside its actual design parameters. The CIA used the same type of jet to do exactly the same thing in the past, in the Sixties and the Seventies. DB Cooper wasn't the first one to bail out of a 727. The fact he was a suspected 'Green Beret', was probably where he learned what was done by the CIA. He may even have trained to do it. He certainly wasn't the last one either since their group already used the method twice. This would be the third time, but from a higher altitude.
Laura and Ally were in the seats behind pilots.
"Do you want to move back into the lounge area?" Ally asked.
Laura liked being in the cockpit. She found it a thrill to be right behind the flight deck. She looked at all the controls and gauges. There sure were a lot of them.
"We can. This is exciting to me to watch this too." Laura said. "It all looks so complex."
Ally knew there was a lot of computer involvement with the updated avionics and the operation of the plane to two person control. She didn't see the need to rush anything on a personal level. She planned on a longer term commitment.
"We can do what you want." Ally said. "We have the whole rest of your life to share."
Laura was a little taken aback by her statement. She wasn't really sure what it meant. Did the 'special girls' want long term human lovers? Maybe they weren't actually free to go about their own business anymore. She didn't want to ask. If it was something they hadn't thought about before, it might be now. There was no need to give anyone ideas. She was just along to have a good time.
She still didn't want to believe they were machines, even if everything pointed to it. There was a certain amount of 'danger' which surrounded them. She'd been on an operation. She saw dead people. She was told they were the enemy. She saw machines she knew weren't from anything in their time period, even if they were. She'd been part of the brutality in the retribution against the gang in San Francisco who'd accosted them and threatened them. Sheila was very violent at times, but never towards them. It was clear Sheila enjoyed the violence too. It was a little disturbing.
She liked being with Mary. With Leticia back in her life, it was a plus. Being around the 'special girls' was a new adventure. One thing was for sure. There was always a finish or two when they were around. They never stopped until she made it. It seemed to please them almost as much as it pleased her. She could tell they were very goal oriented. It was clear when they started a task, they wanted to finish it.
John and Gail finished up with him on top. They touched and kissed until Gail could see he would be ready again soon. She lowered her head down to help start him up. She planned to be on top this time. She wanted all the experience she could get. She knew Samantha and Camille-Hanna wanted a turn as well. It didn't even include what the human girls would want.
Gail looked at John. She wanted to make her desires known.
"Can I be on top this time?" Gail asked.
John was surprised she asked. He was up for anything, quite literally.
"We can do whatever you want." John said. "You're the 'decider'. I'm here to share with you for whatever you want."
Gail already knew she wanted to come back for more. She also wanted to come back with Jesse and do a three way. Right now it was just her and John. She wanted to make sure she pleased him.
Once everything was good to go. She took control and did what she wanted. She was very pleased with the process. She could see John was as well. It didn't take long for either of them to get to where they wanted to be.
John was more than pleased. He managed to hold out until she finished and then he did too.
He asked to take a shower with her. It seemed to please her greatly. He wanted to show her people could have 'fun' in other ways. He'd certainly taken a lot of playful showers over the last week and a half. He really missed the giant shower on the ship. He hoped Cameron went through with her proposal to construct one at the base. He was sure it would become a gathering point. It was fine with him. He planned to make frequent use of it. He was pretty sure there would be a bed close by as well.
Claire and Jesse left and checked on Summer and Jan. They headed for Riley's room.
Vanna and Allison were headed there too. When they came around the corner they found Jesse and Claire about to enter the nursery.
Riley finished up with Sarah and said she needed to get back. She'd left Jesse's room right as Vanna and Allison went around the corner. She didn't see them. By the time she'd made it to the corner, they were all in the nursery. She entered her quarters through the main door. She still didn't know who all was there.
Savannah could see Cameron was a little on edge. She knew Cameron didn't like surprises. Cameron told her there was going to be one for her.
"I'm fine." Cameron said.
A glitch impulse shot through her left hand. She hid it from Savannah.
"I'm fine." Cameron said again.
Savannah knew what it really meant. She wanted to refocus Cameron. She knew they were too far from shore to end up on the rocks anytime soon. There was a pair of binoculars on the bridge. She picked them up and focused them. She took one look around them for any other boats. She didn't spot any. She really wondered where the surprise was supposed to come from.
"Can you take control for a while?" Savannah asked. "I want to use the restroom."
Cameron smiled at her and took over.
Savannah looked back. She wondered what the surprise was. She thought something other than a bathrobe would be better. She figured there might be someone else, or even others, who would arrive. She'd already checked around them for any other boats on the lake but hadn't spotted any yet. There was plenty of room on the houseboat for quite a few people.
"I saw my clothes are here." Savannah said. "Should I get dressed?"
Cameron thought about it.
"Yes." Cameron said. "Put everything on."
She wanted to undress Savannah one piece of clothing at a time once 'Ron' arrived.
It was about the last thing Savannah expected to hear. Why would she need to be fully dressed in the middle of the lake? It seemed to be what Cameron wanted, so she would go ahead and do it.
After she was dressed she found there was some makeup there too. It looked like Cameron brought it along. She put some on but didn't overdo it. She did what she knew Cameron liked.
When she returned to the bridge, she could see Cameron's hand started to glitch again. She silently walked up alongside her and took her left hand. The glitch stopped. Cameron turned and looked at her.
Cameron was very pleased Savannah did what she always did. It was very comforting and soothing to her. She couldn't help but notice how pretty Savannah looked right now.
"Savannah, you look beautiful…." Cameron said.
Savannah could see the look of love in Cameron's eyes. She told Cameron what she always thought and believed from the first time she saw her.
"Cameron, you're the most beautiful of us all." Savannah said.
Ron was in communication with CamNet the whole time. Almost thirty minutes passed since he moved to the outside rear part of the plane. He felt the jet begin to descend some as the speed slowed. They would be over the drop zone in just a few minutes.
"Try to get Cameron to leave your chip in." CamNet said.
Ron ran part of CamNet's program. It was actually a modified version of Cameron's program.
"You know as well as I do she won't." Ron said.
CamNet wanted Savannah to know whose program Ron ran.
"Let Savannah know if you can." CamNet said. "She may ask Cameron to use the tether."
Ron was prepared for it.
"I brought several." Ron said. "They're of various lengths."
The jet was slow and level now at seventeen thousand feet. It was still almost two miles above the area where Ron would land. The wind speed was calculated for the optimum drop zone.
CamNet knew it was Showtime.
"Lower the airstair." CamNet said. "Wait for my command before you go down."
Ron knew it really was Showtime.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Temporal Mission:
Past Timeline:
November 26 1963
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Cameron and Young Allison continued along Chatsworth Street. They were headed to the safe house.
Young Allison wondered what would be next.
"Are you still going to the bank?" Young Allison and asked.
Cameron wanted to get it taken care of.
"Yes." Cameron said. "We should get cleaned up first."
Young Allison thought it was a good idea. Her clothes were a little dirtier than she would like. After all of the hiking they did, maybe they weren't actually so bad.
"I'm all for it." Young Allison said.
As they traversed Chatsworth Street, they looked at some of the horse properties along the route.
There were a few horses which approached the fence as they walked by. Young Allison walked over to where the horses were and touched them on the face.
Cameron reached in her backpack. She produced two carrots. She purchased them at the Safeway store last night. She put one back into the backpack and broke the other one in half. She walked up to where Young Allison was at. She was pleased to see the horses weren't afraid of her. They actually moved over to where she was standing. She thought it was because she held the carrots. She handed the two halves to Young Allison. The two horses still looked at her. She reached up and touched both of them. They made some noise.
"It looks like your pheromones really work." Young Allison said. "I have the snack, but they would rather look at you. Maybe they can recognize true beauty when they see it."
Cameron tilted her head slightly. She looked the same as Young Allison.
"We look identical." Cameron said.
Young Allison kept a straight face.
"That's why they like you more than me." Young Allison said.
Cameron tilted her head slightly in the opposite direction.
"Give them each half of a carrot." Cameron said. "I think they'll like you better."
Young Allison broke each half into half again. She handed Cameron half of a half.
"We can each give them a treat." Young Allison said. "It never hurts to make friends."
Both horses seemed very pleased to receive the carrot pieces from Cameron and Young Allison. The girls gave them a final pat on the face and moved on.
They were almost back to their street. They heard a loud bray. They looked over towards a barn near a building. They could see a donkey on its way over. It was running. It recognized them from yesterday. They didn't have anything to give it other than some grass which was growing on the outside of the fence. It seemed happy to receive it. There was a goat in the area with it. It walked over instead of running. It didn't care for the grass they'd given the donkey. When they'd tried to put it through the fence, the goat sniffed it and pushed his horns up against the fence where the grass was at. It was clear it was displeased by it.
"The donkey looks pretty old." Young Allison said. "I have a feeling it hasn't run in years. I hope it doesn't have a heart attack or something bad."
Cameron was glad she still had one carrot. She broke it in half and gave half to Young Allison.
When the goat saw the carrot, it began to run as well.
Young Allison broke the carrot half into smaller pieces. She gave one to the donkey. It seemed very pleased. The goat arrived at the fence a few seconds later. It saw the donkey was eating the carrot. It turned around and rammed the donkey in the side with his horns.
"What was that all about?" Young Allison asked.
She previously witnessed some similar behavior from a goat when she went horseback riding before. There was a nice dog named Lobo who kept the goat in check.
Cameron was displeased with the goat's behavior.
"The goat is a bully." Cameron said. "Even if we give it something, it's still going to attack the donkey when it gets something as well."
Young Allison thought of an expression she'd heard before.
"I guess now we know why they call an older grumpy person an 'old goat'." Young Allison said.
Cameron nodded.
"It makes sense." Cameron said.
When they gave the donkey and the goat each some more, the goat went to ram the donkey again. The donkey quickly turned around and kicked its hind feet up in the air. It didn't actually hit the goat. It was more of a threat to it. It wanted to let the goat know what would happen the next time.
Cameron was a little surprised at how quickly the goat consumed the carrot. It almost appeared as if it swallowed it. It was gone instantly. She thought a dog ate fast. The goat appeared to eat even faster. It was probably because it had multiple stomachs. It would regurgitate it later on, and probably chew it up at that point. Right now it appeared it wanted to consume as much as possible.
On the third time around, the goat looked at the donkey when it got its carrot. The donkey looked over at the goat. The goat took its piece from Young Allison this time.
"I'm not so sure the goat took the warning seriously." Young Allison said. "I could see it was thinking about ramming the side of the donkey again."
Cameron watched the animals carefully.
"If we feed them again with the last piece we have, the goat will attempt to ram the donkey." Cameron said. "I believe this time the donkey will kick it with its hind feet."
Young Allison was pretty sure the donkey would hurt the goat if it gave it a powerful kick with its rear legs. It might even kill it.
"I think you should feed the goat the last piece." Young Allison said. "I'll feed the donkey. Let the goat know you're more powerful than it is."
Things played out pretty much as they thought they would. This time when the goat turned towards the donkey and lowered its head Cameron reached through the fence and grabbed one of his horns. She held onto it. The goat tried to move. It couldn't do anything. It pushed its feet into the dirt and tried to back up. She held its head in the same spot. She slowly moved its head around until it looked at her. The goat realized it was trapped. It let out a bleat. She pulled the goat slowly up to the fence. She looked at it for a few seconds. She let her eyes turn blue and then red, before they went back to brown. The goat stopped struggling. It let out another bleat. It was very long this time. It sounded different than the one a few seconds ago. She released the goat. It backed up several steps, but continued to look at her.
Young Allison and Cameron held up their hands. It was clear there was no more to give them. They started to walk away. The donkey made some noise. The goat did as well.
"They're still watching us." Young Allison said.
Cameron thought about the way the animals acted. It was much different from the two horses they'd passed earlier.
"I think the donkey and the goat don't get much attention." Cameron said. "Their owner is probably elderly. The horses appear to be around people more often. We'll keep an eye on them going forward. I'll try to have something for them to snack on if we see them again."
Cameron and Young Allison continued on their way back to the safe house.
Only Fix So Much
Sometimes spare parts are needed
To repair what's broken
It seems the words heard the loudest
Are the ones never spoken
Some things are taken too far
They end up very extreme
Not everything is what it appears to be
If it's all another's scheme
Things which suffer from neglect
Are not easy to restore
It's often much easier
To look elsewhere for more
Not everything is worth the effort
To polish up and refurbish
It may not be understood at first
The difference between a blemish and rubbish
There are many things in life
Which can turn into a crutch
It doesn't take long to realize
One can only fix so much
Nobody
