Chapter 1235
Invisible Wall
Cammy fired several magazines of ammunition from her silenced M9 into the drainage pipe. She didn't know where the Gray was at. She thought she might be able to hit him with a ricochet or at least with bullet fragments from impacts around him. Her goal was to at least wound him so she would be able to follow the blood trail.
She quickly but cautiously advanced along the section of storm drain pipe where she was sure she'd scored some hits on the Gray. She needed to worry about any booby traps he may have left in her path. They would most likely consist of some type of explosive.
She wanted to get a little information. She was ready to terminate the Gray if needed or if he posed a threat to Savannah. She hoped to be able to beat some answers out of him first. She didn't intend to make his termination quick.
Cam had been tracking the truck and driver of the big rig who they believed was involved with the abuse of one of the females they'd taken into custody. She wanted to finish her task. The call to assist the rest of the team came first. She was assigned the furthest sector within the area of the drainage system. She'd just arrived on the scene. She hadn't even taken up position on her street yet when Savannah sounded the alarm and made contact.
She quickly drove over to the street one past where Savannah was at. She wore her vest and carried her M9 and Taser.
Cam reviewed the storm drain plans on her phone CamNet sent her. The Gray was in a section that reduced the size of the area they needed to search by three fourths. It appeared Cammy blocked his retreat back into the flood control channel. It further reduced the number of possible exits the Gray could use at this point. The further Cammy pursued him, the less area he had to run. At some point he was going to run out of drainage pipe.
There were only seven possible exit points he could use from the curbside and two manhole covers in the streets from where he was last reported.
Tom lifted the manhole cover in the street and looked down inside. He'd been two streets past Savannah at the time and moved back to reinforce her. He was informed Cam was going to enter the drainage system ahead of where the Gray was at. John Henry told him to hold one street past Savannah. Cam would enter there.
Cam pulled up and got out of her SUV.
"What do you have?" Cam asked.
Tom would have liked to have reported better news. There wasn't any.
"I've detected nothing." Tom said.
Cam already made the decision to enter the system.
"I have this." Cam said. "Go back to where you were on the sixth street. Cover me up."
Tom was a little apprehensive about Cam entering the system alone. It made him think back to the time he was inside of the mine with Savannah. He hoped to prevent Savannah from entering the drainage system. It seemed the best they could expect for now would be for Cam and Cammy to trap the Gray between them and terminate them before it became a further issue.
Cam could see Tom was a little apprehensive. She didn't think he needed to be. She felt confident she would be able to deal with the problem.
"There's nothing to worry about." Cam said. "Cammy and I will take care of business. It won't take us long."
She slipped inside and went down into the storm drain system. Tom replaced the manhole cover over her.
Cam looked around in the darkness. She could see a tiny spot of light from the little opening in the manhole cover up above her.
She paused and listened. It was quiet. It looked like it was going to be 'cat and mouse'. She intended to be the cat.
Savannah waited where she could cover both of the manholes in her section. She covered one in the street and one in the sidewalk over the storm drain opening in the curb.
Nothing further happened as she waited.
She heard Cam's instructions to enter the system the next street over. Now Cammy and Cam were both inside the storm drain system. She liked the fact Cammy received some assistance. She was also worried because Cammy didn't know Cam had entered the drainage system to help.
Savannah thought the Gray was down or moved on. There was no way to know what happened. All she knew for sure was the fact she'd experienced a close encounter. Maybe he'd spotted her as he tried to lift the manhole cover. She could tell they were very heavy.
She also needed to consider the fact the Gray might have moved on at this point. She didn't think he was going to stay and fight unless he ran out of options. He'd only been halfway through the distance of the drainage system when she'd encountered him. He still had a large area in which to hide and move around. With Steve and Tom close by, she didn't think she was still needed where she was currently at. There were other options available to her.
"I think he may have moved further south." Savannah said.
John Henry reported where everyone was.
"Tom is on the sixth street." John Henry said.
Savannah didn't want to take any chances. She believed the Gray may have kept going. It was better to cover all of the bases.
"Have Steve move up to this position." Savannah said. "I'm going to where Cam was supposed to be. I don't want to leave the final sector uncovered."
The drones were able to watch all the possible exits now for the segment the Gray was trapped in. He wasn't getting out of there undetected at this point. The drones' options of response were limited by their altitude. They could always fire a missile if necessary.
Savannah hoped to avoid another missile strike. They'd already used one on the van where they believe the small drone originated from. If anyone questioned what happened, there were already 'permits' entered into the system. The van was listed as a prop for a movie shoot.
A section blown out of a city street would be another story altogether. There were still businesses in the area. It was imperative they kept the Gray from exiting the system and entering one of them. She knew they still needed to consider the possibility there might be some type of 'escape' tunnel from one of the buildings which could be used as an exit tunnel for the Gray.
Young Allison Was on board with Cam entering the system to backup Cammy. There was something else which bothered her. She didn't like the new development. She didn't want Savannah to move to a new sector.
"I want Savannah to stay where she's at." Young Allison said.
Anna thought it was a good plan. It appeared the Gray was trapped.
"The Gray may have moved on from the area where Savannah encountered him." Anna said. "Cammy should be in pursuit of the Gray. He shouldn't be able to backtrack. Cam should be in front of him. He should be trapped between the fourth and fifth streets."
Young Allison was worried for Savannah's safety. She thought it was a strong possibility the Gray may be contained between the two female Terminators underground. If Savannah did move to the furthest location, it should remove her further from harm's way.
"It might put Savannah out of the danger zone then." Young Allison said.
Anna pointed out a grim reality. It was something everyone needed to remember.
"Until the Gray is terminated, the entire area is a danger zone." Anna said.
It was a morbid reminder to Young Allison. It was never over, until it was over. The current operation wasn't over yet. Without any input from those below ground, they still knew nothing.
She needed to consider Savannah's report. There'd been multiple gunfire shots reported in a relatively short amount of time. She wondered if it was an exchange of gunfire or if it was one sided directed at someone. It could have been the Gray shooting at Cammy, or Cammy shooting at the Gray. Since the Gray attempted to exit the system after the shooting, it seemed he may have been the one doing the shooting at Cammy.
Allison left the lab earlier to try to get a better handle on what was happening with the operation. She currently sat in John's spot in the Command Center. John Henry was next to her. She was worried when it looked like Savannah would face the Gray. He almost came up where she was at. She felt her apprehension level rise dramatically when Savannah exited her SUV to engage the threat.
"It looked like a close one for Savannah." Allison said.
John Henry felt everyone from the future who opposed them was a threat. He worried about Savannah's safety as well. He knew she was experienced. Experience played a big factor in combat operations.
"Any encounter with Skynet operatives is a close one." John Henry said. "Savannah is trained and skilled. She'll be able to defend herself."
Allison wanted to follow the operation with Savannah. She was distracted when she saw a feed on one of John Henry's monitors. It was from the ship. Sheila was naked in some type of hallway area. Cameron led her into her room. It was the look on Cameron's face which worried her. Cameron looked very excited. It wasn't a look often seen on her face. She'd seen the look on Cammy, Cam and Ally before. It was always during a sexual encounter. Cameron always seemed to maintain a 'blanker' look otherwise. She believed the 'blank' look actually made Cameron more appealing. It always seemed to give her a more 'innocent' look.
The door closed into the room. It was the end of the feed. What she saw next was even more disturbing. Ally brought some clothes and placed them inside the door. It was the tissue she placed on top of them which sent out a red flag. It was something she could have used after some of her abuse….
Wait!
"…for Savannah?" John Henry asked.
Allison wondered how she missed the question. John Henry was right there next to her. She must have really been caught up in the moment.
"What?" Allison asked.
She'd relived a little of what she'd seen and been through.
John Henry tilted his head slightly as he looked at Allison.
"Do you think it's a wise choice for Savannah?" John Henry asked.
Allison needed to figure out what John Henry referred to.
"I really don't know." Allison said. "Time will tell."
Allison tried to refocus on the operation. Worrying about the past was useless. What was done was done. She still needed to look back at the security feed and the closed door. She quickly pushed the thoughts from her mind. Everything that happened now would be in the past after it happened. There was no way to fix any of it.
Kyle rounded up Jesse and Claire in the buffet area. He brought them over to their table. Ally was with them.
Riley started at Derek. She looked at the plate of food in front of him.
"I can't believe how much you can eat." Riley said.
Derek stopped for a few seconds and looked up at her.
"I'm hungry." Derek said.
Derek I was a little worried by Riley's attention. He didn't think it was a big deal. He'd been to other buffets before. None of them were quite like what was available on the ship. He hadn't been too impressed by the breakfast spread. There were only so many breakfast type foods. He actually believed what arrived with room service was better. The lunch and dinner spreads were extremely extensive and diverse. There were many types of food he would simply never have on his own if he were to go out some place.
He didn't want to overdo it. He didn't want to waste food either. He looked around him at some of the tables. One thing was for sure, there was a lot of food wasted. He needed to remind himself about what Cameron said. They were on vacation. There was more than enough food for everyone on board the ship and then some. She encouraged him to try different things. If he didn't like it, he didn't need to eat it. It was hard to remind himself about it.
There was some more small talk and banter back and forth.
Sarah thought Ally looked a little upset. Ally, Hanna, Anna and Sheila all showed a lot more 'emotion' on their face than the other Terminators. Cameron, Cammy and Cam were all the same and showed much less. Holly, Samantha and Gail brought up the end of the pack. She needed to remember Holly and Gail were created as Restorators. They didn't have extensive 'Neural Interface' programs with specific human females. They'd also never been under the control of Skynet. They'd been created by Mrs. Weaver. The reminder of their creation was also a source of worry. She hadn't liked her encounter with Mrs. Weaver before her departure. She knew Mrs. Weaver helped John extensively in the alternate future. She felt she owed her one for her assistance. For now she would give her the benefit of the doubt.
Sarah needed to refocus her thoughts. She didn't like to see anyone upset. She thought of asking Ally about it but decided not to. Maybe Ally and Sheila had a little spat. It happened from time to time. Kyle and her experienced their own as did Derek and Riley. It seemed John and Cameron experienced quite a few. It was how life worked.
It made her think about Savannah. She thought Savannah never seemed to have a problem or issue with anyone. She wondered if it would change when Young Allison was a little older. They might butt heads like Allison and Vanna did at times. It would be interesting to see. She hoped it would always be good for them. No one always agreed all of the time with someone else. She thought sometimes people could use a reality check, even her.
Ally looked around the table.
"Excuse me." Ally abruptly said and got up.
Sarah, Riley, Jesse and Claire all looked at each other. They all knew the look of emotional distress when they saw it.
Ally walked outside/ In a very short time, Gail and Hanna came in and sat with Claire and Jesse.
Sarah didn't think she was the one to deal with other people's personal issues. Her approach was never very diplomatic. She looked at Riley and then outside where Ally was at.
Riley nodded at Sarah. She'd noted something was off with Ally as well. It was time to use a little tact. She didn't want to escalate the issue further.
"Who wants seconds or dessert?" Riley asked.
Everyone thought it sounded like a good idea. There always seemed to be new things to try.
Riley slipped outside when everyone went to get more things to eat.
Seconds ago:
Ally looked at the couples sitting around the table. They each had someone specific to share things with. She glanced outside where Gail and Holly were at. She thought they should be able to join their girlfriends too.
Her true love was Sheila. Sheila wasn't there right now. She didn't like where Sheila was at. It bothered her greatly. She felt very depressed. She excused herself abruptly and headed for the door
She'd gone outside to free up Gail and Hanna to be with their human girlfriends. At least they could share with someone all the time. All she ever was allowed to be with all the time was Sheila. She was sure it was all going to be different.
Sheila seemed to be a willing participant in her own 'abuse'. She didn't know if abuse was the right word. She felt it's what it was in reality. Cameron selfishly stripped Sheila of her virginity and gave it away herself. The strange part was, Sheila went back for more and told Cameron she would allow her the use of her chassis 'anytime'. Cameron seemed more than willing to take it. She didn't think she could really blame John for what was occurring. Cameron was the one behind it and who orchestrated everything. She wondered who would be next. She wondered when Cameron would come for her.
Ally was lost in thought and wasn't paying attention.
She was surprised when Riley sat next to her and took her hand.
Riley didn't say anything. She just sat there and held Ally's hand.
It was at that point Ally realized her hand must have been glitching. It wasn't something she normally experienced. There was one big surprise associated with all of it. She'd never expected Riley to be the one to comfort her. The only thing more unexpected would have been if it was Sarah.
Riley finally spoke.
"I've gone through a lot of depression in the last six months or so." Riley said. "I know what it looks like. I know what it feels like."
Ally looked at her but didn't say anything.
Riley knew she'd always been treated a little differently than everyone else. She understood the reason, even if it wasn't her fault. There was always an invisible wall there, even when Cameron tried to reach out to her. Everyone was caught up behind the invisible wall. Even Savannah seemed to keep some space between them. No one would ever allow her past being a friend. Even when she was with Jesse in the beginning, it was just sex to Jesse. There was never a relationship there.
"We can talk about it if you want to or not if you don't want to." Riley said. "Time will help fix whatever it is."
Ally knew it wasn't the case for Terminators. Cameron was proof of it. She knew for Terminators, whenever something happened, it was always like it happened again when they thought about it. Time didn't dull anything. Nobody ever got past anything.
She looked at Riley. There was no need to drag anybody else into the problem. It was bound to only make things worse. It certainly wouldn't make them better. Nobody could change Cameron's mind.
"I'm fine now." Ally said. "Thank you."
Ally wasn't fine. She didn't want to become the problem for anyone else.
Riley stayed a little longer before she went back inside. She asked Ally to rejoin the group.
Ally was very pleased Riley reached out to her.
Sheila-Cameron and John playfully washed each other off in the shower.
John couldn't contain himself and was constantly touching and fondling Sheila-Cameron.
The tether plugged into the back of her neck didn't seem to get in the way very often. Most of the action happened on the front side of Sheila–Cameron's sheath. They finished up their shower.
Sheila–Cameron didn't want to neglect John's other needs. She wanted to make the option available. She doubted he would use it.
"Do you want to join the others and get something to eat?" Sheila-Cameron asked.
It wasn't what John had in mind.
"We could." John said.
He wondered if Sheila-Cameron got 'cold feet'.
Sheila-Cameron could see John looked disappointed.
"Or would you rather do something else instead?" Sheila-Cameron asked. "There's a lot to eat here too."
It was what John was after. He wanted to make sure what was going to be available to him. He hoped it was everything. He didn't want to overstep. He also didn't want to seem overexcited. He actually was.
"Do you mean like we did before?" John asked.
Sheila-Cameron wanted everything from John in her temporary chassis.
"There's still 'one place' you haven't been." Sheila-Cameron said.
John's interest was instantly spiked. It was something he'd wanted to try earlier but wasn't sure Sheila-Cameron would want to go along with it. She was rather reluctant in her own chassis when he wanted to do the same thing. She always told him there weren't any pleasure receptors located there. He was in if she'd allow it. He wanted to make sure he didn't overstep.
"I thought you didn't care for it." John said.
Sheila-Cameron didn't care for it. She wanted to share everything with John in her current chassis. She wanted every possible experience to compare. So far she'd found the experience in Sheila's chassis superior to the same experiences in her own chassis. She knew it was actually all based on the sheath. Both of the chassis were equipped with the same neural network.
Maybe it was just the fact she could be 'someone different' which made it seem different. John sure seemed to like her current appearance. She thought it motivated him a little more than normal. She'd read in Cosmo everyone liked to try a little 'strange' every now and then.
"I don't really care for it because it doesn't do anything for me." Sheila-Cameron said. "I just thought we should try everything. I know you like it. It will be over fast. I don't mind. Maybe this will be different. I want to know."
John was aware she was much more vibrant in her current chassis as Sheila-Cameron. Not only did she seem easier to please, she also seemed more outgoing. It was a better experience for him physically as it seemed to be for her too.
"You seem more easily stimulated in this chassis." John said.
Sheila-Cameron couldn't deny it. She felt Sheila's chassis performed better than her chassis did in every aspect. She was going to take Sheila up on her offer to physically switch chips into each other's chassis. She thought she could try it for a few days. Maybe it would be a few weeks. It could be a few years. Wait, it might be forever...
"I'm more aroused and driven." Sheila-Cameron said. "It's superior to mine in that regard. I believe it applies to the human females as well."
John thought about it. He wanted to know more about it. It was a concept he'd heard about before. He thought it all depended upon each individual.
"Do you mean Jesse would be more easily stimulated than Allison?" John asked.
She'd spent a lot of time observing the girls over the years. She felt she knew everything about them in bed. Her observations were only with females for Vanna and Allison. She'd seen Jesse and Derek before. She'd also seen Sarah and Kyle and Derek and Riley.
"I believe so." Sheila-Cameron said. "It's representative of their behavior from my observations as well."
John wondered about it. It better explained some of the extreme actions by Jesse and especially Sheila. He wondered how they would translate over to Young Jesse. They weren't the only ones to contemplate.
"It explains a lot." John said. "It means Vanna falls somewhere in between them."
She'd watched Vanna very carefully over the years. Vanna's eyes only ever followed females when they went out. She never looked at a male. Well, there was one. She actually did look at John. She knew Vanna was willing to try to be with John. She wanted to see how it was to not be 'taken or forced'. She'd tried for years to allow Vanna to have the experience. It never worked out. It was close a few times. She really wanted to free Vanna from the demons of the past which still haunted her. She also knew the demons may never be slain.
"Vanna is highly stimulated by females only." Sheila-Cameron said. "Jesse is stimulated by both males and females. Allison is somewhat stimulated by both, even if it is very little by males."
John couldn't blame Vanna at all for what happened to her. He really didn't have a clue as to what she went through. What he knew was only the tip of the iceberg.
"Vanna suffered a lot of abuse and negative experiences." John said. "She was given comfort and love by females."
Sheila-Cameron thought she would mention it to John in case Vanna came on the cruise when Jesse was off.
"Vanna wants to be with you, John." Sheila-Cameron said. "She at least wants to try it one time."
John wasn't sure where to go with the statement. He knew he was close to being with Vanna a couple of times. It was never as close as he was with Savannah a few times. He'd actually been 'bouncing around' on Savannah.
He didn't want to get side tracked.
"Vanna is beautiful." John said.
At this point in time, Sheila-Cameron didn't think for them to try it once could hurt much. They would both know it was only for one time 'going in' to the event. She really believed Vanna should experience the fact not all men were cruel and evil.
"I think you can be with Vanna one time to show her not all males are bad or only know how to use and hurt a female." Sheila-Cameron said. "You would be able to show her a loving touch and equality. I want it for her, John. It will really help her move her life forward."
John liked the idea. He'd already decided when opportunity knocked, he was going to answer. He was willing to give any of the females a try. He didn't want to get carried away or push it too far with her. He didn't want to seem greedy.
"I don't know…." John said.
John thought what they were doing now was pretty wild.
Sheila-Cameron came up with a new thought and idea. She wanted to help free Vanna from her self created prison. Well, the prison wasn't self created. It was the fact Vanna chose to remain in it that was the problem. She was going to help Vanna out. She planned to carry it out.
"I'll borrow Hanna's chassis so you can try it out first. You'll see what Vanna is like." Sheila-Cameron said. "We can both see what it's like. I want to know."
John was never sure when she was serious or joking. He never knew when she was about to 'set him up'. He would 'fish' a little and see where it went. He was all for the chassis swap but he wanted something else too.
"I thought the Metal girls would only agree to 'this' if they were allowed to try it one time first, before you took control." John said. "I think they all wanted to be the one who was in control of their virginity first, before they turned their chassis over to you."
Sheila-Cameron frowned at the reminder. It was the original deal. She was able to get Sheila to agree to her terms and allow the use of her chassis and the loss of her virginity by her. It was based on John's hesitation to actually 'do it' with Sheila first which allowed her to obtain what she wanted from Sheila.
"It was the agreement." Sheila-Cameron said.
John wanted to point out Sheila didn't get her turn, yet.
"You didn't allow Sheila to do it." John said. "She still wants it."
Sheila-Cameron didn't think what actually occurred was of her doing. She was very pleased with the outcome. She was even more pleased she could be a virgin for John and not worry about her past.
"I was hesitant to do it. Sheila offered me the use of her chassis anyway." Sheila-Cameron said. "You were the first male to touch this chassis since it was Resequenced. It was with my program too. You were my first as Sheila-Cameron."
Sheila-Cameron was very pleased Sheila allowed her the honor.
John wondered if it was because she always thought Future John 'broke her in', in the future and erased those files. She'd always believed she'd been 'used' before and didn't know for sure. It caused her a lot of frustration.
Sheila-Cameron wanted to remind John what was currently available to him.
"Do you wish to try the other females' chassis?" Sheila-Cameron asked.
John wanted it on two levels. He'd take whatever she arranged. He wasn't about to turn anyone down or hesitate again when it came to sharing with each other. He missed a few opportunities already. He wanted more than just her in control of their chassis. He wanted what she'd promised.
"You said they'd be allowed to try it first on their own…." John said.
Sheila-Cameron felt Sheila would help her with the other female Terminators to do it the same way she'd done it.
"I may be able to get one or more to allow me the honor." Sheila-Cameron said.
John knew it was a lot to ask from any female. He wasn't sure any human female would voluntarily do the same thing if it was possible. He didn't want anyone to be used or shortchanged.
"Will you honor your promise to them?" John asked.
It appeared Cameron moved the goal posts in the middle of the game.
"I will allow it one time if I may have unlimited use of their chassis after it happens." Sheila-Cameron said.
John wondered how long they were going to stand in the bathroom. It was a little unnerving to see Cameron's chassis standing there facing away from them with the tether in the back of her neck. It was still fully clothed.
He wanted to get things started.
"So is it the bedroom or the buffet?" John asked.
Sheila-Cameron planned to give John a buffet of female chassis.
"The buffet will be in the bedroom, John." Sheila-Cameron said. "I want you to have the best time of your life on our honeymoon."
John could have done without the honeymoon part at the end of her statement. He'd been fondling Sheila-Cameron chassis ever since they'd dried off. He just couldn't get enough of it.
"The bedroom it is." John said.
Sheila-Cameron indicated her chassis.
"It's all yours." Sheila-Cameron said.
He looked at Cameron's chassis. He wondered what Sheila-Cameron was going to do.
"Do you need to unplug?" John asked.
It was the last thing Sheila-Cameron wanted.
"Hardly…." Sheila-Cameron said. "I'm not giving up a second in this chassis."
Sheila-Cameron reached over and picked up Cameron's chassis under the arms and carried it into the bedroom upright like a mannequin.
John actually found it quite disturbing. When Sheila-Cameron placed it by the bed, it was facing the bed. The direction Cameron's chassis faced bothered him even more.
"Can you turn it the other way?" John asked.
Sheila-Cameron didn't see the need.
"My former chassis is deactivated while I'm here, John." Sheila-Cameron said. "THIS is my current chassis. This is who I am right now."
It still bothered John to have 'Cameron' watch him with her program in Sheila's chassis.
"It's just the idea." John said.
Sheila-Cameron was very aware how excited John was to be with Sheila's chassis. She thought he would like to try the real thing.
"I think you should be with Jesse or Jesse can join us." Cameron-Sheila said.
The idea intrigued John. He knew she always wanted to be with a female.
"Do you mean a three way?" John asked.
It was a three way, but without her.
"I meant when Sheila was back in control of her chassis." Sheila-Cameron said.
John was still in. He wondered if they would agree.
"Is it something Jesse would want?" John asked.
Sheila-Cameron pointed out what seemed to be a well known fact to everyone.
"Jesse has always wanted to be with you." Sheila-Cameron said.
John remembered all the times Jesse tried. Maybe she wasn't behind all of them at the time. He always felt she'd 'forced' Jesse to act. There was only one reason why he hadn't partaken in the bounty of booty previously. The thoughts of Future Riley were never far back in his mind.
"I was afraid to hurt you." John said.
Sheila-Cameron felt just about everything changed or evolved since the early days. She realized sex was no big deal if it was just sex. It was an act of pleasure. The emotional baggage only made things complicated and caused problems.
"I've grown a lot since then." Sheila-Cameron said. "I want you to be with Jesse before you're with Sheila."
John would have liked to have heard her say 'Young Jesse'.
"I don't know." John said.
Sheila-Cameron motioned for John to lie on the bed.
"I'd offer to start you up but I can see it's not needed right now." Sheila-Cameron said. "It appears the thought of things to 'come' has excited you."
John couldn't deny it.
"It has." John said.
Sheila-Cameron moved on top of him. She was extremely aroused herself.
"It has me too." Sheila-Cameron said. "I'll drive. Hang on. You're in for a wild ride."
John swallowed hard.
Sheila-Cameron faced him and bent down to give him a kiss.
It was time to get things started.
They did.
The female Fanatic carefully made her way back towards where she'd parked her van. She checked behind her and around her as she moved. She didn't want to be captured again. She didn't want to end up tied to the 'comfort bunk'.
She moved through the brush with the trees overhead. She couldn't help but feel as if she was being watched. She constantly checked around her. She made it back to the van. She looked around it to see if anyone may have tampered with it. She would hate to get into it and have the bomb explode when she turned the key.
She didn't see any footprints around it so she thought it would be OK. She carefully opened the door and was about to get into the van. She looked inside the van at the bomb in the back. It still worried her the van might be booby trapped. She decided to go around to the side door and inspect the bomb to see if it had been rigged. She really didn't want any nasty surprises.
Hank and Larry started forward. They would attempt to do as much damage as they could silently until an alarm was raised. If there was a 'Clean Room', they hoped to find it and destroy any version of Skynet located there.
They continuously checked around them for any type of surveillance equipment. So far they hadn't encountered any. They thought it was highly unusual based upon the nature of the complex. Maybe when it was constructed, they felt it was too secure to be penetrated and didn't see the need for internal security. There'd been other Skynet related installations they'd been to where there was little to no security either. Perhaps Skynet was overconfident in its abilities.
They passed by several more rooms. All of them were empty. They found what looked like old construction. It appeared to be into solid rock.
Hank reached over and touched the side of the wall.
"This passage was made decades ago." Hank said.
Larry thought about the layout of the passageways they'd actually been through.
"If this was an old mine, it would explain why things were laid out the way they were." Larry said. "Some of them were very illogical."
Hank thought about it.
"Why did they clean up the other parts if they were already there?" Hank asked.
Larry looked down the crude passageway.
"They most likely didn't want anyone to look at what was inside the old part." Larry said.
Hank felt it was reason enough for them to look.
"Since there's not much else happening where we're at, I think we should check it out." Hank said.
Larry didn't want anyone to end up behind them.
"This passageway isn't going anywhere." Larry said. "We should sweep the rest of the complex to make sure we don't end up with any surprises. We can always come back here."
Hank was a little worried about the female Fanatic.
"We still have a loose end." Hank said.
Larry hoped when they went through the rest of the complex, they would make sure there weren't any left.
"I don't think there are too many people left alive where we're at." Larry said. "We don't know what's in the two buildings on the outside of this complex."
Hank figured if there was any version of Skynet there, it would be inside of where they were at.
"Let's finish the sweep and then we'll check out the old passageway." Hank said.
Hank and Larry set out to complete the search of the complex.
The female Fanatic opened the side door of the van. The two dead men were still in the back of it. They weren't true believers. They weren't willing to sacrifice for SkyMaster. Now they'd sacrificed for nothing. Dead was dead. They hadn't reached Ascension. She didn't need to be reminded of their cowardice anymore. She grabbed the first one and dragged his body out onto the ground. She reached in and dragged the second one out. It landed on top of the first one and rolled off to the side. Both of their lifeless bodies were sprawled on the ground in unnatural shapes.
She climbed into the back of the van to inspect the bomb.
She was a little surprised to find the bomb wasn't wired to explode when she started the van. The bomb had actually been deactivated. It wouldn't explode right now even if she wanted it to.
The female Fanatic quickly exited the van with her pistol in her hand and looked all around her. It was clear someone had been in her van. It wasn't the two dead men who lay at her feet either.
Invisible Wall
There are those
Who make one crawl
After they trip them
They made them fall
It's wrong everywhere
For one another to maul
There's no friendship
Behind an evil cabal
Life seems to offer
More than one pitfall
It all adds up as more
Baggage one must haul
A dead end is reached
When one wants to appall
No one wants to be
Bounced around like a ball
There's nothing to enthrall
When one's a Neanderthal
It's time to stand tall
Install an invisible wall
Nobody