Chapter 615
Red
Savannah left Dan to guard the entrance and exit of the tunnel they were in. Cammy was ahead of her with Al. Cameron should be in front of them.
Neither Cammy nor Al was spotted returning so that might be a good sign, unless they were both down. That would mean that Cameron was down too.
Savannah knew this was going to be a lot of unknowns. It seemed to be par for the course.
Ed took the lead to guide Savannah's team, Frank was behind him and Savannah was behind him. Tom brought up the rear. They moved along the darkness swiftly. If there were any obstacles or a divergent route, Ed was able to identify the correct route. They figured Cammy or Cameron would have marked it. One of them did.
Savannah urged her team to use caution. She didn't want their teams to start shooting at each other in the darkness. The last thing they needed was for someone to get damaged or worse by 'friendly fire'.
She wanted caution over speed at this part of the operation. She knew circumstances could rapidly change that assessment.
It could turn into a full blown battle in the blink of an eye.
Right now the only thing in front of them was darkness.
Earlier:
The Terminators that waited for the further battle to develop were all pleased to see Savannah return. They knew she was going after Cameron. They all volunteered to accompany her.
Savannah chose the four closest ones. She didn't want to cause any anxiety among the Terminators by 'not being picked'. They would all be good in combat. If Bob would been there, she would have selected him as well.
She'd previously asked John Henry to remind all the Terminators that she was only a team member like all the rest of their group and nothing more.
He did, it didn't matter. They'd all seen the files of her in combat. They all knew Cameron 'chose' Savannah. They all knew Savannah was the 'Chosen One'. They'd seen that Savannah took down more hostile Terminators herself than any of them ever did. That's except Cameron. Savannah held her ground and fought. Her actions saved Cameron multiple times.
Every Terminator there knew Savannah would be the last one standing if they needed to fight. They would all protect her, even if it meant their own termination.
Cammy moved quickly, Al followed her. She slowed as she detected a new sound. It was metallic. It was something other than the ever increasing electrical hum. There were also voices. There was defiantly someone in front of her, they were talking. It wasn't Cameron.
She motioned for Al to fallback to the divergent tunnel that was collapsed. They would try to see how many Grays were in the group.
Cammy wondered what happened to Cameron. She must be down or have taken another route. She wondered where she'd taken the wrong turn. Then again Cameron may have let them pass because there was something behind them that was a bigger threat. That would mean a Terminator.
She peeked around the corner and saw a light approaching. The men would be here in seconds. They didn't seem to be in a hurry so that might be a good sign. Then again if there was a Terminator with them, he could be using them as bait.
Cameron watched as the two men went further down the tunnel. Her biggest concern now was the third figure she'd spotted. She drew her Taser and waited. She knew it would bring down either a human or a Terminator.
She listened and heard the third figure move closer, they slowed. She was afraid she'd been detected when she was about to make her move on the first two men. The new threat allowed the Grays move ahead.
The sound of the first two men grew faint. The new threat that was nearest to her went silent. There was no light. It must be a Terminator.
Cameron was glad she held her Taser. She was ready.
John and John Henry wanted to police the area the battle occurred in. The Blackhawk returned. It brought more Terminators to the target zone. They decided to move the burnt out vehicles to the gravel pit where their drones were staged. They left the dead and burnt bodies in the vehicles. The Blackhawk lifted them and moved them there in short order. It took several trips.
John wanted to get things wrapped up.
"As soon as Cameron and Savannah are out of there I want to get everyone clear. I want to blow the place." John said.
John Henry knew John was afraid Cameron would use one of her warheads on the location to eradicate all of it. He'd sent explosives with the last load of Terminators in the Blackhawk.
"I've sent demolition charges." John Henry said. "Savannah has ordered the destruction of the power feed. She hoped to see what the power was used for. Either way, in ten more minutes it will be disconnected."
John didn't like the communications blackout. With the Skynet jamming field in place there were no communications with Cameron or Savannah. That included the others that were with them.
"I really wish we knew what was happening." John said. "I know deep in the hillside or under the ground we would lose communication anyway."
John Henry could only look at the positive of the unknown.
"There's still been no gunfire or explosions from that area since the initial encounter." John Henry said. "At least there's none that we've detected."
John watched some footage from one of the grounded drones as the Blackhawk brought a shot up vehicle into the old gravel quarry. He knew the girls and their teams could be deep in the hillside. They could be hundreds of feet below the ground at this point.
"That should make me feel better but it doesn't." John said.
John doubted anything involved with the unplanned operation was going to make him feel any better. Cameron was right; sometimes she just needed to act. There was no way to plan for what was inside the mountain. One thing was for sure, there was trouble there.
Wherever there was anything Skynet related, there was trouble.
He wondered what reaction that the cut in power would bring. The Terminators there indicated there was a lot of power going through the hidden tap. What were they doing inside the old mine?
Cameron wanted to draw the Terminator in closer to her. She knew, they knew, she was there. She searched around for a few small rocks. She calculated the angle and threw one underhand low to the ground. She heard it impact the direction the men went with a thud.
She heard movement again. It was right around the corner from her position. They were very close. She decided to take the offensive. She held her Taser with her left hand, it was ready. She held her M4 with her right hand by the pistol grip.
Cameron decided to come out around the corner low to the ground. That might give her a fraction of a second advantage. She made her move. Her motion already started. She heard some kind of thrashing and metallic sounds from the way the two Grays went. Cameron hoped the Terminator would look in that direction.
Either way, it was 'Showtime'.
Ed moved the team forward. He followed the markers Cameron or Cammy left. They were able to bypass any divergent routes so they'd made good time.
Savannah looked at the divergent routes as they passed them in the darkness. She wondered where they all went. They followed the trail left by Cameron or Cammy. That still left a lot of unknowns behind them. She realized the mine would be like a maze. That was why Cameron and Cammy followed the sound of the electric hum. That must be a location where there was something.
Ed heard some kind of thrashing and metallic sounds up ahead. He immediately stopped the team and listened.
Savannah hadn't heard what he did. He leaned and whispered in her ear that some type of struggle must have taken place. That worried her greatly. Was it Cammy or Cameron? What if they were down already?
"We move forward." Savannah said. "We don't stop until we find Cameron, Cammy and Al. Pick up the pace. I can keep up."
Savannah was determined to find all of their people and make sure all of them got out. Someone was in an altercation ahead of them and she wanted to find out who it was.
It could be the enemy that was taken down or it could be the enemy that took their people down. She wondered if she was just seconds away from combat. She was ready.
Cammy waited with Al. She identified there were only two men. It was doubtful one or both were a Terminator. They were too sloppy. These would only be Grays. It was possible there was a Terminator with them and he used them to draw attention, while he followed them in the shadows. They may not even know he was following them.
She signaled for Al to take the Gray closest to them and she would take the other one. They waited for the men to pass and both of them sprang out from concealment and attacked them. One of the men dropped his rifle before one of them could grab it. It made a metallic noise when it hit the ground. They quickly drug the deceased men into where they'd been hiding.
"Come on." Cammy whispered. "Cameron let them pass for a reason. It couldn't have been a good one either. I bet there's a Terminator. It could be more Grays too but I don't think so."
Before she even finished whispering they heard Taser fire from the direction the men came from. It sounded like several Tasers. It could be Cameron firing more than once too.
They both drew their Tasers. They held their Taser in one hand, and their M4 in the other.
"Let's go." Cammy whispered.
They both started to run.
Cameron was up ahead and most likely in a struggle with another Terminator.
There could be one or a dozen hostile Terminators.
They would meet the threat head on, Terminator style.
Moments ago:
Cameron came out of the blind tunnel low to the ground. The Terminator was right in front of her. He held a Taser and a pistol. He'd looked up at the noise from the tunnel where the Grays went.
Cameron fired her Taser. She was close enough for a sure hit.
She felt a jolt and her world went blank.
Earlier:
The Skynet Terminator moved silently through the darkness. There was the possibility that someone probed and maybe even penetrated their security. They were unable to contact their security detail. They'd indicated that someone violated the 'No Trespassing' zone. That triggered a communications block for anyone on the outside. Now they couldn't reach anyone on their team. Two Grays were set to check on it.
The Terminator was aware how inept humans were. He really didn't know why Skynet put up with them. Machines could do everything so much better and efficiently.
Now he was assigned to work with Grays. He watched as two of them were sent to find out what actually happened and get the communication and surveillance gear back to work.
He decided to follow them. He hung back and let them move ahead. They needed to use a light to see. How pathetic was that? They were noisy and undisciplined. He doubted they would last long in a firefight.
They'd been walking for some time now. One of the Grays got too close to the wall and his rifle scraped on the rocks for a second.
The Terminator thought about terminating both of them and dumping their bodies in one of the shafts. He should just take over the operation himself. If he was questioned about it later on he would claim they 'took off' once they were on the outside.
Wait
What was that?
He replayed his files. He was sure he'd seen movement.
He did.
There was someone off to the side in one of the blind tunnels.
He needed to end this new threat. Maybe they'd been penetrated for real after all.
He came to the conclusion that it was another Terminator. He wondered if it was the 'Metal Bitch' there was talk of.
He wanted to try out a female chassis. Maybe this was his chance. He pulled out his Taser and moved forward. He knew that the other Terminator knew he was on to them. He hoped to get a Taser shot off before they could act.
The Terminator moved towards the opening. He was ready to turn and fire. There as a noise in the tunnel in front of him. There was some rustling too.
Wait.
It was a trick. He figured the other Terminator was about to spring. There was movement down low.
It was the 'Metal Bitch'.
He fired his Taser and his world went blank.
Cammy and Al moved forward. They heard movement from behind them now. It was probably more of their troops following them or it could be a hostile force to intercept them from one of the divergent tunnels. It might be enemy reinforcements from the outside.
Cammy needed to make a decision. She needed to protect their way out and make sure they didn't end up with enemy troops behind them as well as in front of them. She hoped it was Savannah but she didn't know yet.
"Al, you remain back at where we left the Grays and stop whoever is following us." Cammy said. "It may be Savannah so be careful. It could be more Grays or Skynet Terminators too."
"Affirmative…." Al said.
He moved back towards where he'd been earlier with Cammy.
Al could hear them coming closer. He still gripped his M4 and Taser. They were hurrying now. Whoever it was must have heard there been some type of altercation. That most likely meant it was a Terminator or a Terminator with Grays. It could be their troops too.
Savannah motioned for her team to stop. She could almost 'feel' there was going to be a 'friendly fire' incident. She honestly didn't believe that both Cameron and Cammy were down.
"I think it is Cammy or Cameron that's ahead of us." Savannah said. "I want to signal them."
Frank knew the codes for identification. If it was the enemy, they would know for sure where they were at.
"It will give away our position." Frank said.
Savannah knew it was a risk. That's why there was a 'challenge'. There were risks in combat. The risk seemed greater not to establish who was who and where they were.
"I don't want any 'friendly fire'." Savannah said. "That means in either direction from any of us."
They all nodded. They'd developed preselected code words to issue for a 'challenge'.
"Red." Savannah called out softly.
The reply was instant. No one needed to think about it.
"Black." A male voice answered, it was Al.
They moved up quickly to his positions
"Where are Cameron or Cammy at?" Savannah asked.
He filled them in on all the details as they moved forward.
The fact there was Taser fire wasn't good.
It seemed that someone knew there was a Terminator and they knew how to take it down.
Seconds ago:
Cammy left Al and hurried forward. There was only silence in front of her. She wondered if Cameron was incapacitated. She knew she needed to hurry but didn't want to get Tasered herself.
She saw two figures on the ground, neither one moved. They were both Terminators, one was Cameron.
Cameron was down!
CamNet contacted Sheila and Ally. There were a few enemy vehicles that were just taken down. Some of them showed the same vehicle registration address. It was different from the ones they'd visited previously. It was in the same area though.
Ally and Sheila were aware of the current events unfolding in the remote foothills of the Antelope Valley.
"It looks like we'll miss the big shindig." Sheila said.
Ally checked her weapons.
"We've been plenty busy on our own." Ally said.
Sheila looked back and smiled.
"I would have preferred a sex trafficking operation." Sheila said. "It pleases me more to deal with them. It's personal to me."
They'd been on another 'off the books' operations with some drug dealers. They'd taken down their new den. The back of the SUV was full of cash and captured drugs.
Ally knew they'd been directed to catch the Blackhawk. That plan changed for now.
"We're about to get redirected to go there until we received this call." Ally said.
Sheila headed for the new address.
"Well, this should be part of it too." Sheila said.
They drove by the front of the location. They didn't slow as they did.
"I see there's one of those white vans parked on the side." Ally said.
Sheila drove around to the back on the next street over.
"Let's see what we can find." Sheila said.
Ally wanted to find out more.
"Maybe CamNet will update us." Ally said.
Sheila didn't plan to wait. They had a hard target.
"Let's drop in and see if anyone is home first." Sheila said. "I really want to catch a Gray at the location where they have 'comfort bed'."
Ally hadn't liked what she'd seen earlier.
"I'll allow you some 'insanity time' if there is one." Ally said.
Sheila didn't think 'justice' was insanity.
"I'll do what needs to be done." Sheila said.
They went over the back wall.
"Maybe we should've brought our vests." Ally said.
Sheila knew they usually didn't for an infiltration mission.
"If anyone confronts us we can act like lost tourists." Sheila said.
Ally looked around.
"Why would tourists be in this neighborhood?" Ally asked.
Sheila smiled.
"See what I mean, we'd have to be lost to be here." Sheila said.
Ally doubted it.
Sheila planned to show any Grays some 'skin'. A nipple ring usually did the trick.
Wait.
They could run into a Terminator too.
Hear
I want to touch your heart
So very hard I have tried
I have felt all your pain
With you I have bled and cried
An infatuation can occur in seconds
That is the physical attraction
But that is nothing lasting
Just an unsustainable distraction
I know that you resist the thought
That real beauty flows deep within
As time erases physical beauty
All that is left is wrinkled withered skin
The love trapped in your heart
Seeks the same returned reaching out
Burnt, stung, abused, used, stolen by some
Fills you with trepidation and doubt
Love is there, you know it is
Without direction or reciprocation
It can bleed your soul, stab your mind
Bestowed genuinely leads to emancipation
I am far yet so near but real
To share I am always here
When your mind needs someone to listen
I open my heart and mind and hear
Nobody