Chapter 360

Fallback

John Henry watched the battle unfold from the drone footage. The HK Tread which smashed through the wall was a surprise to him. It was an even bigger surprise to see Cameron run out of the hole in the wall and jump up on top of the HK Tread. He took immediate action.

"I have the HK Tread targeted." John Henry said. "When everyone is clear, I have a shot."

He hoped the HK Tread wouldn't return inside of the building with Cameron on the back of it.

John was more impressed than threatened by the HK Tread. He watched Ron and Ronny cripple it. It was clearly not going anywhere at this point. He still wanted it brought down.

"As soon as Cameron is clear, take the shot." John said. "Cameron, disengage if you can so we can hit the target."

Bob looked in back of them

"We have new trouble." Bob said.

John heard some noise from the direction Summer headed.

"Now what's wrong?" John asked.

Gunfire broke out from the area where Summer went earlier.

John looked over to where Dan was at. He was on their left flank.

"Dan!" John shouted. "Go help her."

Dan was already on the move.

"I'm on it." Dan said.

The sound of the gunfire soon increased. There was a lot of shooting going on. It was clearly not a good sign.

John was a little concerned with gunfire behind them as well as the errant HK Tread. It continued to spin in circles. He wasn't sure what else it could actually do in its current condition.

Al called Derek up to where he was at as he looked into the interior of the damaged truck.

Derek and Jim cautiously approached the truck. It was still smoldering. There was a giant HK Tread inside. It looked like it may not be too badly damaged in the smoking ruins of the truck.

On further inspection, it appeared to only be charred and not destroyed. There were pieces of warped metal on it from the burnt trailer.

Jim thought he heard something inside the HK Tread. He reached out to stop Derek.

"Wait." Jim said.

No sooner than he spoke, than the HK Tread started to move.

"Run." Jim said as he urged Derek away from the truck and HK Tread.

John Henry watched both operations. He was short on weapons with the drones over Derek's team. The new development posed a serious threat.

"The drones are out of air to surface missiles." John Henry said. "Fallback…."

The HK Tread moved a little and a missile popped out of a port on its side. It searched for a target.

Jim shoved Derek into a roadside ditch and shielded him with his chassis just as a missile fired from the HK Tread. It struck their SUV. It was a direct hit.

Derek could feel Jim's body on top of him being impacted by shrapnel….

Cameron was on the HK Tread. She was in too close for any of its weapons to reach her. She already ripped wires and hydraulic lines loose. The minigun was smashed and disabled.

She slammed her fist into the side of the exposed missile. It crushed the side of it. It was now wedged in the launcher and unable to fire. She pulled a Thermite grenade and jammed it between the missile and the superstructure. She hoped to use its own weapon against it as the burning Thermite made the missile explode. There could be a sympathetic detonation of the remaining ordinance of the internal magazine of the missile launcher.

She was aware it was often the demise of many a tank, along with its crew, when it took an armor piercing round and set off the ammunition for the tank's cannon. It usually resulted in the turret being blown off.

Cameron felt the offensive capability of the HK Tread was neutralized. It was time to get away from it. She jumped from the HK Tread and headed for cover. She knew John Henry also had the HK Tread targeted with a drone.

"Go ahead and take the shot, fire." Cameron said to John Henry.

A hatch sprung open and a Terminator emerged from inside the HK Tread.

Ronny and Ron both fired on him. They concentrated their fire as they did on the cog wheel of the HK Tread. They hit his legs with Coltan rounds. He fell at the side of the disabled HK Tread. He tried to crawl away but didn't make it very far. The grenade exploded and showered him with burning Thermite.

Cameron dived for cover just as two missiles hit the HK Tread. There was a massive explosion as the power cell on the Terminator exploded along with the HK Tread's ordnance. The earth shook in their area.

There was a massive crater with small billowing mushroom type cloud. Shrapnel was flung in all directions.

Bob made John duck down when he saw the missiles headed for the HK Tread. There was a massive explosion and the ground shook. There was the sound of shrapnel hitting and tearing through the trees and brush around them. The shrapnel must have gone in all directions. There was sure to be some damage to some of their troops.

John was protected by the knoll but he knew Cameron was very near the HK Tread when it exploded.

"Cameron!" John said.

Bob observed her get behind some cover. He was pretty sure she made it. He also knew what Cameron would tell John if she were there. He knew from hearing it every time repairs were being made and John was around.

"She was mostly protected." Bob said. "Think of what she would tell you next, when you showed concern for her first."

John knew what it was. Cameron would tell him to check on his other troops first.

The current problem was behind them.

The firing behind John and Bob intensified. John knew Summer and Dan were on it. It was worse. It was time to act.

"Come on." John said. "They need our help."

Bob needed to protect John as they assisted the others.

"I'll lead." Bob said. "You must stay behind me."

John understood his limitations. It didn't matter right now. Their troops needed help.

"Let's go." John said. "Move now. We go in hot."

John knew their Terminators were in trouble. The time for caution and refereeing was over. He did need to think about the rest of his troops. They could use some additional assistance.

Derek's SUV was just targeted and blown up by the HK Tread.

Al saw the threat and acted. He threw two Thermite grenades. Both of them landed on the HK Tread. He would like to have possessed a LAW rocket right now but he didn't. He needed to provide a target for the missiles from the drone. He figured if he heated things up, they might be able to use the air to air missiles.

"Fire your heat seeking missiles at the HK Tread." Al said. "They have a heat source now."

No sooner was he clear of the area, when two heat seeking missiles were fired and struck the target.

Al moved to where Jim and Derek landed. He saw a lot of shrapnel from their exploded SUV strike around them just a few seconds ago.

Jim was offline, his back a shredded bloody mess.

Al spotted Derek under Jim. He was moving a little.

"Derek!" Al shouted, very worried. "Are you injured?"

Derek managed to get an arm and a leg free. He was stuck. He was worried about Jim not responding on top of him.

"I'm not hurt bad." Derek said. "I'm trapped under Jim. How bad is he hurt?"

Al checked Jim over for any major damage. He wanted to make sure his power cell wasn't damaged. It wasn't.

"He's offline." Al said. "It appears to be sheath damage only, he should reboot."

Al moved Jim so Derek could scramble free. As soon as he was free, Derek looked Jim over. He knew it was how he would have looked if Jim hadn't shielded his body with his own. A Terminator saved him again. Cameron warned all of them about being in the field, as he checked Jim over he knew why.

This wasn't the first time a Terminator saved him from death or massive injury. He really respected them at this point. The Resistance Terminators were some of the best 'people' he ever knew.

As he checked Jim over he, couldn't help but feel guilty. If he wasn't there, Jim would have most likely been in a different location. Al didn't appear to be damaged and he was very near the HK Tread when he tossed the Thermite grenades on top of it.

He was sure there was going to be some type of negative repercussion directed at him because of Jim's current condition. He was willing to take whatever heat it was as long as Jim was able to make a quick recovery and suffered no mechanical or permanent damage.

The Blackhawk approached the site where Derek was at.

Kyle came along at the last minute when it looked like Derek was going to be in a jam. There was a good chance they would be used as a Strike Force for another target if they didn't need to act as a Mike Force for Derek's team. Right now they were a Mike Force. Part of their group is in trouble, they were going to get them out of it.

"Derek, we're two minutes out from your position." Kyle came over the com.

The fourth drone already arrived at their location. It was hot, and ready to fire. It was fully armed. It appeared the HK Tread was inactive.

Jim rebooted, Al moved him and Derek further away from the burning SUV.

Derek looked Jim over a little better.

"Thank you for saving me." Derek said. "I'm really sorry you were damaged so severely."

Jim could see Derek was sincere.

"I should be fine." Jim said. "I just did what I could to help."

Derek squeezed Jim's shoulder some. It was a genuine act of appreciation.

"Thanks again." Derek said. "I won't forget this."

John Henry was aware of the Terminator which emerged from the HK Tread Cameron was on and fought. His demise was quite spectacular when his power cell exploded. There could be another one in the HK Tread they just took down in the truck.

"Watch out for a hostile Terminator." John Henry said. "The other HK Tread Cameron battled contained a Terminator inside of it."

Derek looked at the HK Tread. It wasn't as totaled as he thought it would be. He heard Cameron mention earlier she wanted to capture more Skynet equipment.

"If a Terminator comes out, try to take him with the gun." Derek said. "Let's see if we can capture the HK Tread. It's damaged but not destroyed."

The drone which fired all its missiles moved into position. The minigun targeting the hatch John Henry selected. It waited for a target.

The Blackhawk landed on the other side of a small ridge. They wanted to be out of the direct line of fire. They also wanted to be far enough away in case the HK Tread did blow up. Kyle and four of their Terminators were on the ground and moved toward Derek, two of them split off to flank them.

Cameron could feel some shrapnel hit her. She knew John was going to be angry at her now. She wasn't worried about the damage, but how John would react to it. It was always a problem. Didn't he know she needed to deal with so many problems already? She didn't need to feel self conscious about the condition of her appearance for some minor sheath damage. She was a machine She was there to do a job, not 'play house'.

The business they dealt in was deadly. For all practical purposes, her trade made her a death merchant. When death and destruction was dealt out, it could be expected to be returned in kind from the enemy. There was always the risk of damage in every engagement she was involved with. It was simply part of the job.

She heard the gunfire from behind where John was last observed. It sounded like more bad news. She sprung to her feet and ran in the direction of the gunfire.

Ron and Ronny went to follow her.

Cameron wanted to check the building for additional threats. There was no time now. She needed to deal with the threat where John was at. She turned towards her two male clones.

"Both of you, I need you to stay here and make sure everything is finished." Cameron shouted. "Check the building. Check the office area and look for anything hidden or concealed."

Ron and Ronny reluctantly stayed to double check everything. There could be additional threats inside the building. Nothing was inspected yet.

Cameron sprinted over the ridge where John and Bob were. She could see the signs where shrapnel tore through the area by the damage to the foliage. John should have been protected if he would have remained where she instructed him to. They already moved off. She was as irritated as she was worried John wasn't where she told him to remain. She knew he left to enter the fight. She followed the sounds of gunfire….

They were easy to track. There was a lot of gunfire.

Sarah just found out Kyle went out with some Terminators in the Blackhawk. Now she was worried. He left without saying anything. It was probably because she would have ridden him hard about it. She headed for John Henry's area, Jan tagged along behind her. Based on the current situation, she didn't think it was a good idea. The situation might be something serious. Jan didn't need to worry needlessly. She spotted Savannah and her new friend. She remembered her name was Cammy. She still looked like Cameron to her.

"Savannah, I need you and Cammy to watch Jan for me." Sarah said as she left Jan with them.

Savannah wondered what was up but didn't want to alarm Jan.

Riley passed by at the other end of the hall.

Now Savannah really knew something was up.

Riley hurried and joined Sarah alongside John Henry as they monitored everything.

Sarah and Riley looked at each other as they saw the extent of damage where all the drones were at. There were signs of destroyed equipment, along with a giant crater in the ground at one location. They didn't even know what they were looking at, other than some type of massive carnage at several locations.

Riley took Sarah's hand. Sarah gave it a gentle squeeze. They both knew their loved ones were there too. They didn't like it because they were there in the first place. It also made them think maybe they should be there as well. Cameron wanted to keep all the females out of the fighting. If Skynet ever started to get the upper hand, none of them would be able to remain on the sidelines. They would need to stop the threat.

They saw John and Cameron were both nearby. They didn't understand yet there were multiple target locations and an ongoing battle. There were three distinct areas where combat occurred, even if they were in relatively close proximity to each other. One thing was clear, the fighting wasn't done yet.

"They'll be OK, Sarah." Riley told her. "Cameron will protect them."

Sarah knew Cameron and their Terminators would try to protect all of them. The more she looked at the monitors. The more worried she became. She could see the extent of damage was very extreme in the rear area of a building. She could see there was a massive hole in the wall. She wasn't sure what caused it. She figured it was some type of explosion.

She saw the images of what looked like a severely damaged big rig. There was something ominous in the remains of the trailer. She found out it was where both Derek and Kyle were at. Riley and her were both relieved neither one of them was hurt. There was damage to some of the Terminators with them.

Sarah turned her attention to the battle which raged near the building with the hole in the wall, and the giant crater in back of it. It was where John and Cameron were at.

Riley followed what was happening as well. She still held Sarah's hand. She gave it a reassuring squeeze. She knew she was worried about her son. She was too. They were both worried about the same things, even if the reasons might be different.

One male Cameron clone, who was with the other captured truck, arrived at Derek's location. He took charge of the area. He assigned two Terminators each to Derek and Kyle.

He spoke in Cameron's voice as he checked Derek over.

"Do you have any other wounds?" The clone asked.

Derek was still a little shaken up. He briefly wondered if he hadn't suffered a concussion or something similar when he heard 'Cameron' speak to him. He realized the male Terminator ran a copy of Cameron's program. It was her way to show him she was concerned about him specifically.

Derek didn't think so. He was barely even scratched. Jim took all the punishment. It cost him a lot of worry.

"No, I'm good." Derek said. "I'm worried about Jim."

The clone could see things were under control for now. They wanted to lighten the mood. They also wanted to get Derek and Kyle out of the danger zone.

"Get to the chopper." The clone said in Bob's voice.

Derek and Kyle looked at each other.

"I'm staying." Kyle said.

Derek still felt some ringing in his ears. He looked over the area again. It was under control at this point. He didn't really want to leave but he wanted Jim to get inspected back at the base and get repairs started. He figured Jim would only go if he went. He knew Jim was assigned to him and wouldn't relinquish his duty or responsibility as long as he was functional.

"I want Jim to go with me as well." Derek called back over his shoulder.

Jim looked at the Cameron clone, he nodded at Jim. Jim went to join Derek. His back was a bloody mess.

Derek extended his hand to help Jim up into the Blackhawk. He wanted to show some solidarity with him over what happened. He wondered if he hadn't been there, if Jim would have been able to get clear of the blast. It bothered him to see someone damaged because of him. Jim always looked out for the Reese clan. He was with Sarah and Riley whenever they went out. Bob was with them often as well. The Terminators all treated them good. Now he felt even guiltier.

He better understood Cameron's repeated warnings and admonitions to John, as well as Kyle and him. It was obvious from the male Terminator, which ran Cameron's program, and used her voice to let him know it was her, Terminators could have their chip placed in a different chassis if their original one was damaged or destroyed. With a copy of their program, they would still exist, even if their original chassis and chip were destroyed. Cameron already told them she possessed copies of all of their Terminators programs.

He knew it was something which couldn't be done for humans. If they were hurt or killed, they were hurt or killed, and there was nothing which could be done about it. Maybe Kyle and him needed to rethink some of the operations they went on and how hard they pushed things when they didn't need to. Maybe they both needed to speak with John about it as well.

Derek looked over at Jim and felt guilty. He couldn't help but think he was responsible in some way, even if the fault fell on Skynet's shoulders. It made him angry and only strengthened his resolve to bring the beast down.

Vanna's phone rang. She was in a heavy sex fueled love session with Jesse. Jesse took her 'there' a dozen times or more. She lost track. The last one was six in a row one after another, maybe more. She was unable to speak or think for a little bit. She remembered Jesse telling her to breathe. She didn't remember how. Once she did remember, her vision returned as well. She also was unable to see.

She figured it must be something important if Cam called her right now. Cam knew where she was and what she was doing. She also knew the reason behind the current encounter. She figured Cam and Gail probably listened to their conversation anyway. If they did, it made the incursion even more serious. Something must be wrong.

Jesse reached for the phone, but Vanna was under control by this point.

"Hello." Vanna gasped.

Cam hated to bother Vanna right now, but Vanna made it clear if there were damaged Terminators, she was to be notified no matter what she was doing. Her job came before she did.

"Vanna…." Cam said. "I'm sorry to disturb you. We have damaged Terminators coming in."

Vanna was back up to speed in an instant. She was afraid it was Cameron.

"How bad is Cameron hurt?" Vanna asked.

Jesse touched Vanna's arm.

"I'm not sure who all is damaged other than Jim." Cam said. "I'll know more soon."

Vanna and Jesse both grabbed the pile of clothes on the floor. they headed for the lab naked, they put clothing on as they hurried along. They traded pieces of clothing as they did. It didn't really matter whose clothes they put on.

Savannah spotted Vanna and Jesse running half naked as they dressed along the way. Something must really be wrong. Cammy and Jan were with her.

"Let's go." Savannah said.

Savannah and Cammy arrived with Jan in tow. Riley and Sarah arrived shortly after they did.

Jesse and Vanna were dressed at this point. They both still needed to close their tops. It gave everyone a good view of Jesse's rings. It seemed Savannah and Jan were the ones who stared the most. It was a beautiful sight. Vanna's bright pigmentation was very prominent as well.

Savannah needed to up her game in the Resistance. Others fought in the future, her battles were minor. She needed to help like Vanna did.

"Jesse, can you watch Jan for me, please." Savannah asked. "She shouldn't be here when the damaged Terminators arrive."

Jesse could see Jan already checked her out. She closed her top.

"Sure, love." Jesse said.

Savannah smiled at her. She really wanted to be with Jesse. Jesse was Young Jesse, just older, and with a lot more 'experience'. It was experience in both good and bad ways. It was still her desire.

"Thank You." Savannah said to Jesse. "I'll have some work to do here."

Jesse took Jan's hand.

"Let's go play." Jesse said to Jan and led her away.

Sarah watched them go. She was worried Kyle would be among the wounded.

Vanna looked at Sarah and Riley. Riley looked the most upset, it was probably Derek.

"How bad is Derek hurt?" Vanna asked.

Vanna took Riley's hand.

"Not too bad. Jim is damaged." Sarah said. "Maybe Cameron too, she was just in some heavy action and headed for more."

"Damn." Everyone said at once.

It was probably going to be a big event.

Cameron moved up on John and Bob. She could hear them, but not see them yet.

One of their drones passed low overhead.

The gunfire continued up ahead.

"I'm down." Summer said. "I have the targets pinned. They can't escape."

Dan was able to reinforce her. He gave her a quick inspection.

"I'm with her now." Dan said. "She'll be fine. She's repairable."

It meant a lot of damage, John thought. She was with them just a short time ago, undamaged. He also knew it could have been him who was down and probably not repairable either.

Cameron came up behind Bob. He quickly moved in back of John to face her.

"Stay here." Cameron said.

Cameron went to assist Summer.

John could see she was damaged.

"Cameron, you're hurt." John said as he tried to go to her.

Cameron barely paused.

"I'm repairable or replaceable." Cameron said. "You're not."

As quickly as she appeared, she was gone.

John couldn't help but feel a little guilty and self-conscious about the damage to the Terminators. He watched Cameron go and disappear into the brush.

There was trouble ahead and Cameron headed straight into it….

Closing monologue by Cameron:

Fallback

What appears to be tested by time
Is that life itself is the attack
The only way to move forward
Is to retreat and fallback

To keep the status quo
Is to go nowhere fast
Whatever happens in the moment
Is nothing that will ever last

History does repeat itself
That's proven everyday
The past builds upon the present
On the heart and mind it will weigh

What is the right direction
Where will any change lead
Isn't it all nothing more
Than another way for a heart to bleed

Hearts and minds slowly crack
A soul is shredded by life's flak
Leaving one little more than a maniac
Without the sense to fallback

Nobody