Chapter 1477
Raging Inferno
The two teams of Grays from the machine shop approached the location where the tracker led them. It was the same place they'd 'pinged' the tracker before. They were sure they were at the base of either the Fanatics, or the anti-Metal group. It didn't really matter. They were both the enemy.
The two cars of Grays slowed alongside a building right outside the industrial tract. The leader made sure everyone on his team was ready. They knew there were four men and an SUV. They were a few minutes behind the targets.
They looked at a satellite photo of the area and decided to move right in. The area contained an open space in the middle with the buildings along the perimeter. They should catch the men off guard.
The first car of Grays led the two teams in.
There were a few bullets which hit each of their cars once they were in the open area between the buildings.
They realized there was an SUV barreling towards them. It looked like the men they were after decided to run and make a break for it. They might have found the tracker. They might have some surveillance cameras. Either way, they were on the move.
A few more rounds hit each car so they tried to crouch down inside as they fired their weapons at the speeding SUV. Both cars saw they'd scored hits on it. It seemed as if all the men inside were slumped over from all the hits.
Both cars of Grays spun around to give pursuit to the rapidly slowing SUV. It now had four flat tires and smoked heavily from the engine compartment. It wasn't under power or control.
There was no return fire any longer.
The leader gave the order to slow and hold for now.
Team One stopped. For some reason Team Two kept going and closed in on the disabled and now burning SUV.
The leader again gave the order for them to stop.
As Team Two pulled up alongside the SUV, it exploded. It wasn't the kind of explosion from a fuel tank either. It was a massive bomb. It meant it was either the Fanatics, or some other group taking a bomb to the machine shop.
Team Two's car was shredded with shrapnel and blown over on its side. It burst into flames. There was no movement inside of it as it burnt.
"Should we try to help them?" The second man asked.
The leader looked at the raging inferno.
"There's no helping the dead." The first man said. "We need to check the building."
The second man saw there was no longer a tracker indication.
"Which one is it?" The second man asked.
Young Jesse thought the landscape looked a little bleak over Tehachapi Pass. There were trees, but they were mostly rather sparse. She was thrilled to see the Tehachapi Loop in person. There was a long container train. It was in the process of looping itself at the moment. It was a grand sight. She'd see the pictures and watched the videos before. It was just different to see it in person. She was impressed.
"Look at that." Young Jesse said. "The train crosses right over on top of itself in a big circle. It really is a loop."
Camille knew it was all about engineering, not aesthetics.
"The purpose is to gain elevation and keep the grade down." Camille said.
Young Jesse was aware of what the team spotted at the Mojave airport.
"I want to check out Mojave too." Young Jesse said.
Young Jesse pronounced it as 'Mow-jave'.
Young Allison smiled.
"It's pronounced like, 'Mow – ha – vee'." Young Allison said. "It's three syllables when spoken."
Young Jesse was aware some of the Spanish words from locations in the states with a 'J', were pronounced as an 'H'. She thought the best example was San Jose.
"Sorry, love, Mojave it is." Young Jesse said. "Then we can turn around and fly the rail line up the central valley to Madera after we overfly Mojave."
Young Allison was all for the flight plan.
"It sounds great." Young Allison said.
Savannah could feel Cameron tense up a little as they neared Tehachapi. They were headed for Mojave right now so they wouldn't pass over Bealville, Tunnel 5 or the remains of the bypassed and abandoned Tunnel 4, at least not yet anyway.
"It's all behind you." Savannah whispered into Cameron's ear. "Life moves forwards, not backwards."
Cameron didn't think anything was behind her. Whenever she thought about it, it was always like it just happened. Time didn't dull the pain for her as it did for humans. She was very pleased Savannah was next to her.
"Sure, Savannah, life goes on." Cameron said. "With you at my side, everything is behind me."
Savannah moved her lips from Cameron's ear and kissed her cheek. She moved her head away from Cameron and smiled.
"We're stronger together." Savannah said.
Savannah snuggled in closer to Cameron and they held each other as they headed for Mojave. It wasn't very far away by air.
Young Allison didn't know the extent of the problems Savannah and Cameron both faced since they'd gone 'feet dry'. She figured there was some negative feedback with both of them.
She needed to get used to what the future would throw at her. The bright side of it all was, she planned to do everything Savannah experienced. She planned to do all of it herself as well one day. She looked over at Anna and smiled.
Anna wasn't sure what was behind Young's Allison's smile, but it probably wasn't good for her. She knew she would just have to wait for what she wanted. It would happen one day. She just didn't know when, or even in what time period it would be.
Riley and Claire shared some wild sex at first. They then took it back a notch and shared some love with each other.
Claire could see how hungry Riley was for love. She understood the feeling. The love from men and women were two different things. One was more physical. The other was much deeper and more emotional. It was where they were at right now. A male could share their body. A female could share their soul.
Riley could feel Claire wanted to wrap it up. She didn't know what kind of a schedule she was on. It was clear she'd 'taken' Claire by surprise. She also wondered where Samantha was. She could walk in at any second.
They shared a long slow deep kiss.
"I need to go." Claire said.
Riley wanted to make sure she wasn't actually with Claire earlier. She was hungry for a female on her earlier encounter. She knew everything was 'different' from top to bottom. She really wondered who it was. She hoped to repeat the experience so she could see everything and compare it.
"I really appreciated this." Riley said. "If I was too forward, I apologize."
Claire smiled and gave her another kiss. She knew she'd been a little hesitant to proceed but once things started, she couldn't help herself. She wanted more. No, she needed more. She got it. It was a beautiful experience
"I was a little surprised, but I'm glad we did it." Claire said. "I'd thought about it many times. I've always thought you were beautiful."
Claire picked up a bathrobe and put it on.
Riley was very pleased to hear Claire say she was beautiful. It wasn't something she often heard. She was pleased when Derek told it to her when they were on the ship more than a few times. She really wondered what she was going to tell him. Right now it didn't matter.
"Do you think we could do this again sometime?" Riley asked. "It was so wonderful and loving."
Claire definitely wanted more. She didn't want to seem overly anxious. She was ready to go again right now. She knew she needed to exert some control. She also needed to think about some of the long term implications and how it could affect others.
"Maybe so, it was very sweet." Claire said. "We will need to use some discretion. I don't want to cause any problems for anybody."
Riley felt those words sting a little. She understood Claire meant more than Derek. She meant Cameron too. She didn't want to cause any problems either. She was very appreciative of everything Cameron had done for her. It was a lot. She felt Cameron treated her very fairly. She wondered what she was going to tell Derek. How could she explain she'd been with two females, and she didn't even know who one of them was.
"I understand." Riley said.
Claire smiled. She wanted to let Riley know she'd be back. She just didn't know when.
"I'll be with you again though." Claire said. "This was a beautiful 'first time'."
Riley smiled. She watched Claire leave. She looked around and picked up the other bathrobe. She put it on and went to check on Precious. It was one of the best days of her life! She'd been with two females in a short period of time after dreaming of just being with one again for years. She really wondered who the first one was earlier.
Claire looked back once as she left the nursery. She thought about going to John's room. She really wanted the same experience again. She also wanted to be with his mother again. Sarah was hot in bed. She made the choice to hurry the back way around and return to her room. What she wanted most was in there. John was her man going forward. He could have as much as he wanted, as often as he wanted it. All he needed to do was make her finish one time during the process. She would make it known she was available for everything. Whatever he wanted, she would allow him to have. Right now it was time for dessert.
They watched the drone footage of the 'attack', and then the explosion, in the Command Center.
John Henry looked at Summer.
"Is what just happened how you thought it would play out?" John Henry asked.
It was a little more spectacular than she'd expected.
"Taking out the one car of Grays was a bonus." Summer said. "It should get reported as the Fanatics to the Gray's superiors."
John Henry nodded.
"I think phase two will seal the deal." John Henry said.
There were a few other things Summer wanted to happen.
"Don't forget phase three at the other location." Summer said. "I want a clean sweep."
CamNet set things in motion for it to happen.
"Sheila, Ally and Cammy are on their way." John Henry said.
Summer looked at the drone footage of the area where the remains of the two vehicles burnt. There were six more dead men to add to her total. She was responsible, even if she didn't actually do it. It was her plan. She knew it would result in the death of at least four of the men when she'd proposed it.
There were casualties in war. As long as they were on the other side, she was good with it.
If you didn't win, you lost.
Samantha and Sarah hit it off wonderfully.
Sarah needed a little breather as they cuddled and kissed.
"I can tell you this has been my best time ever." Sarah said. "I mean with either a man or a woman."
Samantha knew the human girls could reach a deeper emotional level.
"It was good for me too." Samantha said. "Don't forget the emotional side to everything. It's important to keep in the forefront."
'It still was the best time ever.' Sarah thought.
The door opened and Claire entered the room.
"Did I miss anything?" Claire asked as she slipped off her robe.
Sarah realized the 'best time ever', was about to get even better.
The more Sarah thought about it, she realized this is what Claire shared all the time, more or less, with Hanna. She was also with all the non Metal girls too. Maybe it was what Samantha meant about the emotional side.
Claire lay on the bed and they formed a triangle. Claire worked on Samantha. Samantha worked on Sarah. Sarah worked on Claire. It should take them through a couple more rounds. After each of them finished at least once, they would switch partners.
Everyone would get a 'crack' at everyone else.
Cam and Hanna liked the plan they'd carried out.
They'd terminated all four men once they were loaded in their SUV. They would need their van for later on.
Cam was the one who'd terminated the men. It made it easier to get them into the SUV and buckled in first while they were alive. They'd all implicated themselves in the abuse of shackled females, of all ages, in the back of the van.
Hanna thought the men got off easy. If Sheila was there, she would've 'fixed them up' real good. Crimes against females didn't go unpunished by her. The 'Jesse' in her from the 'Neural Interface' demanded justice. Sheila always made sure she enacted it. She wanted the abusers to atone for their crimes against females.
Hanna moved the van away to the far side where Derek's team and Kyle's team would be.
Cam waited until the two cars of Grays were about to enter the compound before she sent the SUV with the four dead men on its way. She placed the dead man's foot on the accelerator pedal while it was in 'neutral'. The engine revved up. When the Grays were in the proper spot, she moved the shift selector into 'drive' and the SUV took off. She retreated back into an empty building with the rest of the explosives all of the teams carried. She made sure the door on the building was open. It would be part of phase two of the operation.
She still needed one more part to play.
Holly and Gail kept track as to what was happening at the industrial site.
"I don't think we're going to get there before this all goes down." Holly said.
Allison felt Vanna drove like an old lady. She obeyed too many of the sedate driving rules.
"We would if I was driving." Allison said.
Vanna I looked at her and frowned.
Gail was worried about the girl's safety.
"We're just a backup force." Gail said. "We can interdict any force leaving, or additional troops arriving. Don't forget, we have drone support as well."
Holly could see everything was about to go down. They wouldn't be able to assist where they currently were. She thought they should get some better cover. There could be errant bullets flying through the air from any direction.
"I think we should pull over here and wait for now." Holly said.
Vanna did as she was instructed. She backed the SUV in between two buildings. Someone would have to look right at where they were to see them. They watched the episode with the SUV and the two cars of Grays go down from the drone footage.
"It was pretty impressive." Vanna said.
Allison was familiar with the pattern. It was very much like something Young Allison would do. Young Allison was in an airplane. It left only one choice.
"I bet it was Summer's idea." Allison said. "The one carload of surviving Grays is going to report the threat was neutralized. The enemy will think the threat is over."
Holly was aware there were a few different phases to the operation.
"I don't think they're done with the 'sell' yet." Holly said.
Allison wondered what was next. She was ready for it, whatever it was.
"The show must go on…." Allison said.
Holly and Gail both tilted their heads slightly.
Jesse and John shared sweet love one more time. They didn't really want to part, but Jesse needed to go.
"I think it's time to check on Precious. She's going to need me soon." Jesse said.
John hoped he didn't overdo it. He'd worked her pretty hard on both sides. He may have left Precious short changed.
"I think I left enough." John said. "Maybe I got carried away. I'm sorry about it."
Jesse smiled as she dressed.
"It will all work out." Jesse said. "Everything does in the end."
John wondered what she meant.
He thought they would shower first but Jesse was already dressed. It was just a top and shorts really.
He threw on his pants and a shirt and walked her to the door.
Jesse turned and looked at him. There was a faint smile on her full lips. Her face looked so beautiful and radiant. She really almost looked like a different person.
"I'm yours whenever you need or want me, anytime of the day or night, no matter who I'm with." Jesse said. "If you ask me, I'll come."
John almost wondered if it was a joke at the end, but she was serious. It was the 'real Jesse' talking.
They thanked each other and kissed one last time. He watched her walk away. She turned and blew him a kiss and winked.
John knew he was in deep right now. He was in love with all the girls at this point. Then there was still Savannah and Young Allison. He'd tried not to think about them but they popped up in his head. They were his 'true mates' according to Cameron. How was he ever going to explain all of this to her?
Wait.
This was all Cameron's idea in the first place.
It really was the best honeymoon ever. He didn't see how it could possibly get any better.
He thought about taking a shower. He stripped off his pants and shirt. He was tired. Maybe he would just rest for a few minutes first.
Riley went to see Precious after Claire left. She'd started to get a little fussy. She wondered where Samantha was at. She looked out in the hall and saw Jesse by John's room. She saw Jesse turn around and blow him a kiss. Jesse used to do the same thing with her after they'd made love before. She wondered what all it was about.
She slipped back inside her room before Jesse could turn around and spot her. She decided she'd better take another shower and get dressed. She started back towards the bedroom when Precious cried out.
Riley hurried back and picked Precious up.
She heard the nursery door open again. She headed towards it with Precious. It was probably Samantha on her way back. She wanted Samantha to call Jesse. If she was lucky it would be Claire again. It was really something sweet.
She was a little surprised to see Jesse was there on her own.
"Hello, love." Jesse said as she looked at Precious and then Riley. "Hi, Riley."
Riley attempted to nurse Precious as she held her. Claire already drained her dry. There was almost nothing there to begin with.
Jesse opened her top and took Precious.
"I got this, love." Jesse said. "Go relax a little."
Riley could see Jesse wasn't engorged like she normally was when she arrived. She must have been with someone right before she'd arrived there. It still didn't 'click' with what she'd witnessed a few minutes ago.
"Are you going to have enough?" Riley asked.
Jesse looked down at her breasts. John worked her pretty hard.
"He took a little more than I thought." Jesse said. "I'll be good."
Riley felt her jaw drop a little.
Wait!
'What did Jesse just say?' Riley wondered.
Earlier:
Derek drove to one side of the industrial complex and let Bob out. Kyle drove to the other side and let Jim out. They continued on around to the backside where they were joined by Hanna in the florist van.
Bob and Jim would each fire a few suppressed shots into the two arriving cars to make the Grays think they were being shot at by the 'fleeing' SUV with four men in it. It would keep their heads down as they returned fire into the SUV. It was all part of the plan.
Kyle and Derek watched it go down from the drone footage. They still needed to stay sharp if something changed or developed around them.
"It was quite impressive." Kyle said.
Everything they did was all personal to Derek now. He was the one who'd been tagged.
"I'm glad we weren't in the SUV." Derek said. "When we take down the machine shop, I want in on the raid."
Kyle didn't feel they were finished yet either.
"I hear you, bro." Kyle said. "It may be awhile."
Derek needed to keep in mind there was a larger goal yet to be achieved.
"I know they want to track the Coltan." Derek said.
Kyle thought there was another segment to worry about.
"If they complete any sub assemblies, we need to see where they end up at." Kyle said.
Derek thought of another location where they'd run into trouble on several occasions.
"It better not be the old newspaper plant." Derek said.
It was another place which was a sore spot for everyone.
Sheila, Ally and Cammy were off to join Hanna and Cam. There was an off the books operation to conduct. It appeared to involve sex trafficking.
Sheila pulled away from the curb and left the three girls behind. She glanced over at Cammy.
"So, what did you think?" Sheila asked.
Cammy was pleased with all three of the girls. She liked Mary. Maybe it was because she was with her first of the three. Laura and Leticia were just as hot.
"It was as fine as everyone one indicated." Cammy said. "I'd like to take Savannah there."
Sheila thought of a couple plausible explanations. She thought someone else should be included as well.
"She can go as 'Ann's' younger sister." Sheila said. "You should bring Young Jesse too."
It left a few questions unanswered for Cammy.
"Why wasn't Young Jesse with them on the ship?" Cammy asked. "Did John 'plow' her that many times?"
Ally laughed.
"We all wanted Cameron to use our chassis again so we could get plowed through Cameron's control." Ally said. "There was no shortage of female body parts for him to plow."
Cammy wanted to know how Young Jesse resisted being with the three girls. There needed to be a reason.
"No, really, what happened? Why didn't Young Jesse share with the girls?" Cammy asked. "I don't think anyone could resist them."
Sheila knew it was a little deeper for Young Jesse. It was actually something they'd discussed. Young Jesse wanted to see Savannah a lot. Young Jesse did share with everyone in the Resistance though.
"She didn't want to offend Savannah." Sheila said. "I asked her."
Cammy didn't like her answer. It was what she'd just done.
"Great, now I was just with them." Cammy said.
Sheila looked over at Cammy. She didn't think it was the same thing.
"Relax, love." Sheila said. "Young Jesse and Savannah haven't been together in awhile. She was with everyone else. She didn't think strangers would be good to have sex with before she saw Savannah. It was a personal choice."
Cammy didn't feel much better after Sheila's explanation. Young Jesse and the three new girls were all more things for her to worry about in regards to Savannah.
"Young Jesse really loves Savannah." Cammy said. "Everyone loves her."
Ally and Sheila knew Cammy was worried about Savannah and Cameron. It was clear to all of them Cameron was ready to 'upgrade'. There were forces at work beyond the control of any of them.
"Easy, love." Sheila said. "You can't stop the 'Natural Order'."
Cammy didn't want to worry about it. There are other things which could occupy her mind.
"Maybe when we finish this next gig we can go back." Cammy said.
Ally wanted a little better clarification.
"Do you mean back to the base, or to somewhere else?" Ally asked.
Cammy thought her answer was self evident.
"No. I mean back to where we just were." Cammy said.
Sheila looked back at Cammy and smiled.
"Now you're talking." Sheila said. "It's just my style."
Mary, Laura and Leticia decided to see where the 'special girls' went. They wanted to know a little more about them. They thought they were about to pull a fast one. It might not be quite as fast as they'd thought.
"I want to see how this plays out." Mary said.
Leticia didn't like going behind 'Sue's' back.
"I still think it's a bad idea." Leticia said.
Laura wanted to point out the obvious.
"You didn't have to come along." Laura said.
Leticia felt she needed to. She felt she needed to be there to 'protect' Mary and Laura.
"I came along so Sue wouldn't kill both of you when she finds out you spied on her." Leticia said. "They're secret agents. We all know they are."
Mary knew they were 'secret'.
"I don't doubt it." Mary said.
Laura wanted to know what they did.
"They are secret." Laura said.
Mary thought they were secret, but she wasn't sure how clandestine they actually were.
"You saw what went down at the port after we got back." Mary said. "Do you think it was a coincidence? I don't. I think they were involved."
Leticia was highly offended by the inference. They'd just been with the mysterious girls a short time ago. She didn't see anyone raise their doubts then.
"They're not terrorists." Leticia said. "I'd trust Sue with my life."
Mary was afraid they were all doing it already.
"It may be truer than you think." Mary said.
The statement further upset Leticia. She was really worried Mary and Laura were going to blow whatever secret operation 'Sue', 'Peggy' and 'Barbara' were on. They could be responsible for them being injured or killed. The same thing could happen to them.
The attacker's car, and the SUV, arrived at the front of the target building from different directions. They planned to attack the building. Their original plan was to enter from the front and the rear simultaneously. They decided the rear was where the defenses would be concentrated since the roll up door was already breached. It would make entry into the building much easier.
The five men exited the two vehicles and headed for the front door.
The first man looked at the east side of the building as they approached. He looked over at the attacker.
"Take the side here." The first man said. "Someone may try to escape. We saw the small crate outside of a window from our drone earlier."
The attacker would have preferred to go with the main assault force. He figured they were in for a rougher time than he would face. He peeled off from the group and headed towards the gate. It was locked when he reached it. He saw the other four men were at the front door. There were two on each side of it.
He heard the front door kicked open. He saw two of the four men go in as he climbed over the gate. He heard an explosion almost immediately. He moved down towards where the crate was. He thought about standing on top of it. It looked like a bathroom window was above it. There was a second explosion from inside of the building. The bathroom window blew out and showered him with glass. He wondered what was going on inside of the building. They weren't very large explosions. They were bigger than a hand grenade though.
The attacker stood on top of the crate and peered in through the bathroom window. He could see the door of the bathroom was blown off and lay on the floor. It was burning. He could see there was a lot of smoke in the hall. It started to come out of the bathroom window. There was another explosion somewhere inside of the building. More smoke began to pour out through the bathroom window. It didn't look like a good choice to enter from.
He decided to continue around to the rear. He kept watch behind him at the bathroom window in case someone tried to come out. He soon reached the corner of the side and the rear wall. He moved halfway between both of them. He would be able to seek cover on one side or the other if he could hear someone before they took a shot at him. There was another explosion.
The attacker wasn't sure what was happening inside of the building.
Moments ago:
The four men were ready to breach the front. The first man saw the attacker go over the gate. He sent in the two men on the east side of the door. They had only been inside of the building for a few seconds when there was an explosion.
"We have one man down." The third man said.
The first man and the second man entered the building.
They saw their teammate on the ground. One of his legs was blown off. He must have triggered some type of booby trap.
"Spread out." The first man said.
The third man hesitated. The first man moved around him. He took the lead.
He passed by several doors but didn't open them. He wanted to get to the workroom floor. He figured the men were guarding the rear door. After the explosion, they would know someone came in the front.
The second man was behind him.
The third man brought up the rear. Halfway down the hall, he stopped and opened a door. There was another explosion. The third man was blown against the wall and the restroom door across was knocked off its hinges.
The first man went back to check on him.
The second man continued forward towards the workroom floor.
The first man reached the third man. He saw the timer on his bomb was activated. It was going to go off in eleven seconds.
The first man looked towards the second man.
"Run." The first man said as he got up to run himself. "We've got about nine seconds."
The second man figured out what was going to happen. He ran towards the door at the end of the hall and flung it open. There was another explosion. His body was thrown through the air.
The first man watched the second man get hit by the bomb blast. He looked behind him. There was no retreat. He needed to keep going. The door to the workroom area was gone.
He jumped over the body of the second man. When he landed, he slipped on something. It was the blood from the second man. It was a good thing though. The bomb behind him exploded with much more force. He could feel shrapnel fly over him. The second man's body blocked most of it. He was only hit with a few small pieces.
The first man crawled off to the side. So far no gunfire had been directed at him. He didn't know what he would find further inside.
CamNet's Terminator headed for the roof access opening to gain entry. He wasn't sure if it would be booby trapped or not. He tried the door handle. It was locked. He could see the door open outward. He pulled a little harder on the handle. He could tell it was about to rip off. It wasn't going to pull the door open.
He reached up to the top of the door frame and bent it upward slightly. He could get his fingers in through the small gap. He grasped the top of the metal door and pulled. The door popped open an inch. It made a little more noise than he would have liked. He carefully ran his hand around the frame. He didn't detect any wires or a booby trap. He opened the door up a couple more inches and looked. There was nothing there.
He made his way inside the opening. He closed the door behind him. The area below him was dark. There was a ladder which led down. He paused for a moment to look at everything below him. It was a storage type room. He didn't detect any movement.
CamNet's Terminator made his way down the ladder and checked the storage room. He was alone. He moved to the door and reached for the handle. He didn't know how many defenders he would find.
From the drone footage, Lena and Tina watched six of the bikers close up on the female Fanatic.
"Do you think they will try to stop the car when they see it has two females in it?" Lena asked.
Tina was sure of one thing.
"If they do, there's going to be six dead bikers." Tina said.
Lena didn't doubt the ability of the female Fanatic either. They'd watched her survive numerous encounters.
"I agree." Lena said. "They're about to make their move."
Tina felt the female Fanatic would do the future a favor if she terminated the bikers.
"The more she terminates, the less we will need to terminate ourselves." Tina said.
CamNet directed her two female Terminators to stay on their current path. They were to remain in front of the Gray until they reached the new junction. The three drones already fanned out when they reached the new junction.
The female Fanatic was ready if the small group of bikers tried anything. She reached up and gently touched Jill's shoulder to reassure her.
"I'll keep an eye on them." The female Fanatic said. "If it looks like there's going to be a problem, I'll deal with it."
Jill felt a little reassured. She didn't want to jump to conclusions. Jackie previously told her about the Wastelands and some group of individuals known as Scavengers. This wasn't the future. She was sure there were a lot of people who looked down on the homeless in a similar way. She wasn't a criminal. She just did what she needed to do to get by. If anything, there were others who took advantage of her.
"They might just want to go to the next community and get rooms or something." Jill said. "Not everyone is a 'bad apple'."
Jill tried not to remind herself 'one bad apple' could ruin the entire barrel. She knew how it was easy for people to get caught up in the moment. Some of her 'initiations' into a few of the homeless camps were proof of it. Once a couple of individuals 'started in' on her, there were others who joined in soon enough. They normally were very peaceful and kept to themselves.
The female Fanatic continued to look behind them. The assault rifle rested on her knees. She had two of the hand grenades ready as well. If she needed to use the hand grenades, she would need to get the timing right to get the maximum effect of the shrapnel on the group of bikers. She knew it was always a little hard to hang onto a hand grenade for an extra few seconds once the spoon flew off of it and it was armed.
It wasn't long until they could hear the roar of the six motorcycles. Obviously all of the exhaust systems were modified for maximum loudness on the bikers' rides.
"Be cool. Just keep driving straight at the same speed." The female Fanatic said. "Don't slow down or stop for anything. If they get in front of you and try to slow you down, remain at the same speed. They'll either need to move or be knocked down. If I see any weapons, they'll see mine. I won't hesitate to use it either. I won't wait for them to act."
Jill felt very tense as she watched the bikers close in behind them. Jackie's words were very reassuring to her. She trusted her judgment and ability. She was a combat hardened veteran from the future.
The six motorcycles behind them formed up into three pairs. The first pair moved into the oncoming lane. There was no traffic headed towards them. They began their pass of the female Fanatic's vehicle.
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Temporal Mission:
Past Timeline:
November 22 1963
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Cameron was pleased to see Young Allison was ready to act. She still questioned the circumstances which brought them to where they currently were and what needed to be done. She was sure it was more than the 'tide of time'.
Young Allison could see the throng of people move closer towards the road.
"How much longer will it be?" Young Allison asked.
Cameron looked at the wrist watch she'd taken from the man in the trunk.
"It will be about seven more minutes." Cameron said.
Cameron continued to look around them and search for the perch of the third gunman.
Young Allison figured she had enough time to check out where she wanted to take the shot from.
"I'll be back." Young Allison said.
She started over in the direction she would need to go. She was about to go around a corner when she paused. She looked back in the direction of the car.
She saw Cameron take the guitar case off the trunk and set it on the ground next to the car. She opened the trunk and reached inside it for a moment. She closed the trunk lid and picked up the guitar case.
Young Allison continued on her way. There was a short block wall in front of her. It was over the top of the grassy knoll. It would give her good protection from the sniper in the book depository if he detected her location. He might use his scope to check for the other man to make sure he was in position. She didn't believe he could see her from his position.
She casually took a look around her for anything else which stood out as a threat. She wasn't sure where the third gunman would actually be. The way the block wall was constructed, it would give her protection from the other side. She was about to head back.
Cameron came around the corner with the guitar case. She checked out the spot Young Allison picked out. She thought it was perfect.
"This location will give you good protection." Cameron said.
Young Allison wondered what happened back at the car.
"Did you terminate him?" Young Allison asked.
Cameron tilted her head slightly.
"Not yet." Cameron said. "I could hear him start to come around. I wanted to make sure he remained unconscious until we were done here."
Young Allison could hear the crowd cheering in the distance. It made her feel a little sad for what was about to happen. In reality for her, it already happened. There was nothing she could do about it. She just needed to make sure it happened like it was supposed to.
"You have about two minutes." Cameron said.
Young Allison casually looked around again. She laid the guitar case flat on the grass. There was no one in back of them. Those in front couldn't see them easily unless they knew specifically where to look. All the heads were turned towards the road. There were a couple of questions in her mind.
"We know the guy in the book depository is the patsy." Young Allison said. "The rifle in this case is an expensive rifle. There's probably a certain amount of professionalism involved here. Is it possible the third sniper might actually have a silenced weapon?"
Cameron tilted her head slightly.
"I don't know." Cameron said. "It's possible."
Young Allison could hear the crowd closer to them get louder.
"I make it at less than a minute." Young Allison said.
Cameron looked in the direction the heads were all turned.
"I think it's going to be slightly less than that." Cameron said.
Young Allison knelt down and unlatched the guitar case. She lifted the cover slightly and looked at the rifle. She reached inside and made sure it was exactly how she wanted to pick it up.
Cameron could see the Lincoln Continental convertible approaching. She really wondered whose foolish decision it was not to leave the armored top on it. The need for vanity was about to cost someone their life.
"You will need to be ready to shoot in thirty seconds." Cameron said.
Young Allison began to count down the seconds.
The crowd in front of them began to cheer louder.
At fifteen seconds to go, Young Allison opened the case and took the rifle out. She worked the bolt and watched the round as it was chambered.
She rested the rifle on the top of the block wall. There were ten seconds to go. So far everything she did was just like her training.
Young Allison took one more look around her. She could see Cameron kept watch on everything. She noticed the thug's revolver was in her hand. Cameron was ready to engage any target in a fraction of a second.
She moved her eye to the scope and acquired the target. She heard the first shot. A few seconds passed. She heard the second shot. She saw the President grab his throat. She needed to adjust her angle slightly as his body moved. She aimed for the center of the President's forehead. Her finger was on the trigger, she'd already taken up the slack.
"Now…." Cameron said.
Young Allison pulled the trigger. She heard a forth shot fired a fraction of a second after hers. It reminded her of what a sonic boom sounded like. She immediately worked the action of the rifle and was ready for a follow up shot.
She watched the President's head slammed back and to the left. She knew she'd scored. She brought the rifle down off the wall and quickly returned it to the guitar case. Cameron reached down and picked up the fired casing.
"Let's go." Cameron said. "Stay low for the first few seconds."
Young Allison carried the guitar case. She noticed Cameron walked directly in back of her. If anyone took a shot at her, it would hit Cameron first. She understood Cameron used her chassis to shield her.
Cameron and Young Allison headed back to where the car was parked. They could hear a lot of screaming and shouting behind them.
Raging Inferno
One must twist and turn
Through life's winding maze
There are some along the way
Who can set one's heart ablaze
There will be happy times
Some will be filled with dire
Such is the way things are
As they face an inner fire
When one feels the heat
It's not always in a fireplace
It can be much closer
In one's inner furnace
One must tread lightly
When they enter the danger zone
They may find a little more
Than fire and brimstone
Feelings swirl like a tornado
As they rise up from below
They fan a faint inner glow
Into a raging inferno
Nobody