Chapter 188

Attacked

Bob and Holly were thrown clear of the SUV as it rolled and then flipped, when it was attacked by an HK drone. They didn't see where Cameron was when the HK drone attacked again. It fired two missiles at the SUV.

Bob managed to arm and fire a LAW rocket at the HK drone and hit it.

There was flaming wreckage everywhere. There was a smoking crater where the flipped SUV used to be.

Bob picked up another LAW rocket from off of the ground and looked around the sky. He didn't know if there was an additional threat. HK drones sometimes attacked in pairs. One would try to draw the enemy fire so the other one could spot where they were hidden. It was an effective strategy.

Holly looked at the debris field scattered around the area. There were little things on fire burning all around them.

"Where's Cameron?" Holly asked in panic.

Bob looked down from the sky and scanned the area.

"I don't see her." Bob said.

Holly looked at the smoking hole in the ground.

"Where's the SUV?" Holly asked.

"It's gone." Bob said.

"Where did it go?" Holly asked.

"It's just gone." Bob said.

Holly moved towards the crater. There was nothing but small pieces of burning debris inside of it. They were scattered around the outside of it as well.

"If she was still in the SUV…." Holly started.

She was barely able to get the words out.

"Maybe she was thrown clear." Bob said, but doubted it.

Holly wondered if the burning bits of debris were what was left of Cameron. Was it her clothing? Was it parts of her sheath?

"I scan nothing, NOTHING." Holly said. "Was the explosion her power cell?"

Bob wasn't sure if the blast was large enough to be a power cell. He personally looked at the crater where the Duplicate versions Vanna and Allison perished, along with her baby. He went to the crater where Jesse died. They seemed much more severe in magnitude. He wondered if it depended on how much energy was left in the power cell. Cameron's may have been depleted more than the Skynet Terminators were.

"I don't know." Bob said. "It may have been the drone payload or armament."

Holly thought it was a total disaster as she looked around.

She knew humans experienced dreams. She really hoped where she was now was one. With multiple warnings going off in her HUD, and the damage to her sheath, it seemed very real.

Holly took one more look around the area where Bob and her were at. It was a wonder they survived the attack at all. If they hadn't been thrown clear of the SUV, she was pretty sure the smoking crater in the ground would be a lot larger.

Gail looked at the developments on the ground. She could see it was nothing good which just happened. She wanted to take control of the helicopter and look over the location herself. She would be able to better check the surrounding area.

Gail looked at the copilot.

"Get out." She commanded.

He hesitated. Gail's eyes flashed red, and then stayed red. He got up quickly and transferred his headset to her. He wasn't about to argue with her. He had standing orders to cooperate. He remembered her earlier description about what happened at the site of the explosion. It was only when they got much closer he could see she was accurate. He took one more look at her red eyes.

'What the Hell?' He thought. 'Is it some kind of built in night vision?'

The copilot was unsure what he just witnessed. He knew the group they were associated with was some 'secret government agency'. It's all he knew. The pay was ten times any other job he would ever find. He was told not to ask questions and do as he was instructed. He also knew sometimes he might have to 'look the other way'. He wasn't sure if this was one of those times. Maybe based on the explosions below them, whatever was down there would be one of those times.

Gail looked over at the pilot once she was strapped in.

"Let me take it." Gail commanded the pilot.

The pilot took one look at her eyes and relinquished the controls. He thought the same things the copilot did. The pay was top notch. Follow orders and don't ask questions. Look the other way when it was necessary.

"You got it?" The pilot asked.

Gail already started to scan the area below them.

"I got it." Gail said as she took control.

Gail put the helicopter into a series of tight turns as she scanned the ground for any sign of Cameron. She failed to spot her. She set the copter down and shut it off. It didn't look like they'd be able to leave for a while. There were a lot of things to pick up. Some of them might be what was left of Cameron.

Holly and Bob came up to the Blackhawk as the rotors spun down.

Sarah led the group out

"What's the report?" Sarah asked.

Holly slowly looked over the scattered mess on the ground. She hadn't been able to spot any new clues.

"We can't find Cameron." Holly said. "She's gone…."

"Where did she go?" Sarah asked.

"She's just gone." Holly sobbed.

Sarah looked at the smoking crater in the ground. She understood it to mean what it sounded like. It was a serious development. They needed to take control of the situation and the attack site.

"I want the Term…, I mean Bob, Holly, and Gail to check the burning pieces. I need the rest of you to gather up everything else. Make two plies, one pile for weapons and ordnance and one pile for all other debris. Be careful, some of them were burning a minute ago."

There were several sets of protective gloves. Everyone who wasn't a Terminator was able to have one glove to touch the debris.

Sarah saw the helicopter crew look out at them. She didn't want any speculation or interference.

"Tend to the helicopter and don't concern yourself with this." Sarah said. "Whatever happened here never happened."

The crew disappeared from view. The female who spoke to them looked as hard as nails. They knew she was the group commander. They could tell right away she possessed battlefield experience. They didn't know the 'battlefield' was her just trying to live her life.

Bob, Holly, and Gail all looked over at where the HK drone went down. There was some noise.

Bob noticed movement behind the flaming wreckage. He raised his weapon.

A figure appeared and walked around the flames of the burning drone wreckage.

It was Cameron!

Bob couldn't contain his excitement and relief.

"It's Cameron!" Bob shouted.

Every head turned.

It was Cameron! She carried someone. They appeared terminated.

Bob and Holly felt such relief. Cameron was alive.

The rest of the group did as well.

Bob rushed to help her.

Cameron carried a Latin featured female.

Bob took her from Cameron. He knew it was a Terminator instantly. He saw her chip port was cut open and the chip was missing.

Cameron paused for a moment

"Be careful with her." Cameron said. "I need her body."

Cameron let her hand linger on the female Terminator's face for a few seconds.

Bob nodded in understanding. He wanted Cameron removed from the battle zone. She showed more physical damage than Holly or him. He was sure the real damage was on the inside of her, based upon earlier events.

"Get to the chopper." Bob said.

Holly was by Cameron's side instantly.

The two female Terminators hugged as they checked each other for damage. Both of them would need cosmetic repair.

Holly felt such relief, it was overwhelming…. Cameron made it. She was alive.

She was sure Cameron was terminated. The feelings which overcame her were horrendous. She could understand Cameron better now. She knew so many things made Cameron feel the same way. She also remembered what Savannah always said. Savannah said, 'Cameron was invincible. Cameron was eternal'. She always thought there was something to it. What she just witnessed now was further proof of it.

Allison, Jesse, Riley, and Derek all collected any ordnance they could find which was thrown from the SUV. Sarah and Vanna tended to the three Terminators who were in the crash. Bob was damaged as well.

Cameron explained she rebooted in a ditch and the Terminator landed next to her when the drone impacted the hill. She must have been the pilot, or they were transporting her on it, or in it. By their nature, drones weren't usually manned. It could have been more than a drone too. It was a burning pile of junk right now.

She remembered the report from the one worker at the Tehachapi Airport about some kind of dome on top of the large drone he spotted. Maybe it was some type of operator's compartment. It was there for a reason. She would need to look into it further.

Cameron examined the female Terminator's sheath. She was beautiful. She examined her closely. She opened her top. The Terminator was shapelier than her. She possessed larger and more prominent breasts. She liked the way she looked. She thought John would too.

She would ask John if he would prefer her in the sheath when she transferred her chip. It could be a fresh start for her. She could leave the past behind and start over with John. This way Holly wouldn't have to sacrifice herself for her earlier stupidity. It was something she didn't want Holly to do for her mistake.

Cameron actually felt sorry for whatever Terminator got her Resequenced body, the one she 'ruined'. What was she THINKING? No really, what was she thinking? She liked everything she saw so far on the new sheath. She wanted to check it completely. She wanted to know what she would look like going forward.

Holly saw Cameron unhook the Terminator's pants. She realized what she was about to inspect next. She made sure everyone gave Cameron privacy. It was understandable to wonder what one would look like down there. Sometimes there was a lot going on down there. She glanced back once and liked what she saw.

Earlier:

John received the report of the HK drone attack from John Henry. It was information relayed to him by Gail. The first reports didn't sound good at all. Only Bob and Holly were spotted amongst the wreckage and burning debris. The HK drone which attacked their SUV was brought down by Bob.

He was ready to turn his team around. Dan and Three advised him not to.

John was worried sick about Cameron. They still didn't have any facts yet one way or the other. It did no good to guess or speculate.

He needed to worry about what his team was about to engage. It seemed anything but straight forward.

John and his team approached the airport. They were given the approximate location of the tracker by John Henry. They spotted a helicopter at the location John Henry indicated it should be.

The helicopter was parked. The drone was nowhere to be seen. Where did it go? The tracker still showed it was right there. There were no personnel to be seen. They thought they may need to do battle with some Grays.

John wanted some payback. He wanted the enemy to pay for what happened.

"Watch out for an ambush." John warned. "I want everyone we see terminated."

John wondered if he should have qualified his statement a little better. He was sure the two Terminators understood what he meant. Any of the enemy they spotted was to be terminated.

It looked like a set up for sure.

John received a report from John Henry before they started their advance. He was informed Cameron was OK. So were Holly and Bob. All of them were cosmetically damaged. None of it was anything major. He knew they captured another Terminator as well. He was relieved to hear it was a female. He was unsure of her condition. He was aware Cameron might be able to 'transplant' various areas from one sheath to another. The thought Cameron could still be the same, but 'different', intrigued him.

Dan and Three scanned the area around them through several vision spectrums. They didn't spot anyone to terminate.

"There's no sign of anyone around here." Three reported back.

John looked at the helicopter in the darkness. It looked different to him.

"Get to the chopper." John said. "Check it out and use caution. It could be booby trapped. This is too easy. If this isn't an ambush, someone wants to send a message. Keep your eyes out for any HK drones or other aircraft approaching our position."

Dan went to the helicopter. He returned with their tracker.

"This was sitting on the skid." Dan said. "It isn't the same helicopter. It's not even the same color. This helicopter hasn't been operated recently either. There's no thermal signature."

John and John Henry deduced whoever came for the HK drone knew, or suspected, there was a tracker and found it. It's why they flew so slowly to pull off the switch. They actually stopped somewhere along the way. The HK drone was searched and the tracker found. The tracker probably continued by vehicle to the airport in Bakersfield. The helicopter with the HK drone was able to slip away undetected. It appeared as if Cameron was the real target.

He was more than a little upset. Now they didn't have anything. The drone was gone. The helicopter was gone. The pilots were gone. He knew the Terminators wanted to take out the helicopter crew when they touched down earlier. They could have confiscated the helicopter, and the damaged HK drone. If he knew what was going to happen to Cameron later on, he would have agreed to the crew's termination. He hoped to catch a bigger fish. Right now they didn't have anything to show for it.

What made it worse was they almost lost three Terminators. They'd suspected a sucker play of some kind. It was more elaborate than they imagined. The only good thing was they gained the new female Terminator chassis.

John knew Cameron would be happy. It was the only positive thing. He ordered everyone to return to base once the cleanup was finished. They were all to take evasive action to make sure they weren't followed.

When they left the airport in Bakersfield, they let Dan off in an industrial section to acquire a box truck. It was so they could collect the wreckage of the HK drone and anything else of value or relevance from the area.

The clean up went well at the attack site. Everything was collected and separated into groups.

Everything was ready for transport. They were informed a box truck was on the way. Three and Dan would be able to load everything. They'd used some of the fire fighting equipment at the station next to the fire fighting helicopter to extinguish the small fires.

Cameron was back in form and in control again. Everyone liked to see her this way. She double checked everything. She planned to wait with the wreckage for John's team and assist them with loading all of it.

Allison wasn't about to put up with any of it.

"Cameron, you're going back with us." Allison said.

Vanna and Jesse joined her.

"That's right." Jesse said. "You're done for the night, love."

Vanna made a point of looking at the damage to Cameron's sheath.

"I want to get started on the repairs." Vanna said. "The three of you all need some work."

Cameron looked over at the female Terminator.

"You mean the four of us all need some work." Cameron said. "That's my new chassis."

The three girls looked at the female Terminator in detail now. They liked what they saw.

"She's beautiful." Allison said.

Vanna planned to give the new female Terminator a very close inspection.

"I'll make sure the sheath is perfect, everywhere." Vanna said.

Jesse liked it because the female Terminator's shirt was open and she could see her firm perky breasts. She figured she could assist Vanna later on when the sheath was thoroughly inspected.

"She's a 'looker' for sure." Jesse said.

The helicopter was loaded. It was time to go.

Cameron asked the pilot if she could fly. He relinquished control. Those were his standing instructions. If any of the 'contractors' needed to fly the helicopter, they could. He'd seen the skill the female with the red eyes displayed. He decided to ask her about her experience.

"How long have you been flying?" The pilot asked Gail.

Gail looked at him with a Terminator expression on her face.

"It was my first time." Gail told him.

The pilot wasn't sure if she was joking. He wasn't about to ask again. There was a very stern look to her. She looked like she could rip his head off if she wanted to.

Cameron climbed up and took the controls. She looked back at the pilot.

"This will be my first time too, in a helicopter." Cameron said.

The helicopter crew exchanged glances.

The pilot and copilot both climbed in the back. They looked at the collection of women there. They saw they were all pretty Hot looking, even in combat gear.

Cameron lifted the copter off and was away. She did one quick look around the area they were about to leave behind. Everything looked good. John and his team would be there in minutes.

Holly didn't like the way the crew looked at the girls. She leaned forward, her eyes glowed red as she faced the men.

"Don't even think about it." Holly said to the crew. "Don't even talk to them."

The red eyes were unnerving. They looked at the unmoving female laying on the floor. There was a section of her scalp cut open. There was an empty receptacle, or socket, visible inside her skull.

The crew wondered if all the females there sported the 'red' eyes. They could see the small patches of exposed bloody metal on Bob and Holly, as well as Cameron. They knew when not to ask questions. They were some serious people, real serious.

"It's a good thing we get paid like we do and are patriotic." The pilot said to the copilot and crew chief.

"Yes, because none of this ever happened." The copilot said.

"None of what ever happened?" the crew chief asked.

All three of the men grinned at each other.

Cameron opened the Blackhawk up and neared the redline.

She really pushed the outside of the envelope as she piloted the Blackhawk home.

The pilots were impressed.

"Damn, she can FLY." The copilot said to the pilot.

The pilot nodded. They liked working for the 'top secret government agency' they were told they worked for….

Bob spoke to Allison when he spotted her player.

Allison was ready.

'Long Tall Sally' by 'Little Richard', was queued up ready to play on the helicopter ride home.

It was a request from Bob. A smile beamed across his face.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

Tick Tock Tick Tock

The mind can reach across space and time
Thoughts may go wherever you wish
To caress your mind so wounded and hurt
Is where I want to hunt and fish

Share the thoughts of anger and pain
May I help you break the chain
For I also can't forever torture my brain
Escape calls out to end the strain

I'm a person just like you too
You tried to fit in and run with the pack
I ran away, withdrew, retreated and hid, a coward
There's no future forward, nowhere to go back

I'm so ashamed about all I'm not
A failure, nothing, worthless, not good enough
I no longer know right from wrong, nor care
I can't accept I'll never have the right stuff

Tick tock tick tock each second goes by
As the agony of each new day gives me breath
I see not a new day to live and enjoy its fruits
But simply one more day, closer to death

Nobody