Chapter 1523

I Think I'm Up

Cam and her team were deep in the shadows when the Grays passed By. There was another blast a few seconds later. It was very loud and the ground shook more than usual.

"I lost everything." Gail said.

Cam checked her gear. Everything was dead.

"Great." Cam said.

Jim and Bob moved up and looked both ways out of the cavern.

"It's clear." Bob said.

Jim checked the other direction.

"It's the same thing on my side." Jim said.

Cam knew an energy bubble could appear at any second. If it did, they would need to take it. Skynet would be bound to be on alert afterwards. She would make sure the team entered. She would step out at the last second. The job wasn't finished yet. It would bring Grays and Terminators most likely to where they were currently at. She would need to evade them and make her move. She didn't plan to leave until the job was finished. It was in her programming to bring Skynet down. It was the same dilemma Cameron always faced. Right now she was 'Cameron', even if she wasn't. The base program to terminate Skynet was still there.

Young Allison watched the feed from Toto. Two Grays passed close to Cam's team.

"It was a close one." Young Allison said.

Anna thought the team was good. There'd been no terminations.

"They made it OK." Anna said.

Young Allison needed to stop following what was happening on the plane. It distracted her. She needed to refocus. She wanted to concentrate on the Resistance team.

"Can only John Henry control Toto?" Young Allison asked.

Anna thought it was better for Young Allison to stay with the operation.

"He's following its past movements in the same manner as it did before." Anna said.

Young Allison wondered if the feed was constant.

"How often does Toto 'check in'?" Young Allison asked.

Anna determined Toto only needed to transmit directly if it discovered a problem. It seemed there were very few of those based on previous transmissions. The entire data file was directly transferred at different time intervals.

"The video feed is all that's transmitted." Anna said. "It only happens when Toto determines it's relevant. It will 'plug in' once every few hours for a complete download to the mainframe there."

Young Allison was aware Summer infected Toto with a virus of some sort through the interface Cammy and Gail rigged up. It seemed to her Skynet, or at least the computer there depending upon how sophisticated it might be, might detect the threat for what it was, and how it occurred.

"Maybe the team needs to be ready to pull out once it happens." Young Allison said.

No sooner had Young Allison finished her sentence, than they suddenly lost the feed from Toto, and all communications with Cam's team.

"That's just what we didn't need." Young Allison said.

Anna couldn't agree more based on Young Allison's previous comment a few seconds ago. The team needed to worry about its safety.

Cammy went back to the lounge area on the executive jet and spoke with Sheila. She knew what Sheila liked.

"They're done." Cammy said. "I just wanted you to know that."

Sheila smiled and immediately got up and went to where John and Laura were at in the Master Suite. Cammy followed her. Sheila opened the door and entered.

John and Laura just separated.

"I think I'm up." Sheila said.

John was a little surprised to see Sheila come into the room. He wondered if she meant she was up next for him, or Laura. Cammy poked her head in.

"Mary awaits you next door, Tony." Cammy said. "I'm sorry, Laura, but Tony's on a timetable. We all need to share."

John put his underwear on. Laura reached up and gave him a kiss.

Laura was extremely pleased with her encounter with 'Tony'. It wasn't the usual wick, wham, bam, thank you ma'am, she was used to. She thought about their initial contact when they started. She wanted to look out for Mary a little bit. She knew it was going to be an eye opener, among other things for her.

"It was beautiful, Tony. Go easy on Mary." Laura said as she winked at him. "She hasn't done this in years. It was only a few months for me. She's going to be tight, she's pretty small anyway."

Before John could respond Sheila moved in and 'took over'. She started right in on Laura. He was surprised at how aggressive she was. He was pleased with the information about Mary. He really looked forward to checking things out. It also helped get things going again as far as his performance would go.

Laura's head dropped back down onto the pillow as Sheila started.

Cammy ushered John next door to the Executive Suite. Camille was just about to leave. Mary sat up on the bed with the sheet pulled up only to her waist.

"She's all warmed up." Camille whispered as she passed John. "You're in for a good time."

John looked at Mary and then looked back. Camille and Cammy were both gone. The door was closed.

John sat down next to Mary. The girls weren't exactly strangers, but it was pretty close. The girls all shared with them on the ship before, but not him. There were a lot of conflicting thoughts going through his mind. A lot of them were alleviated with what he'd just done with Laura. He still felt he needed to mention something.

"I have to say I feel a little awkward." John said. "I've never really done this before in this manner. I'm only ever with the girls I work with. Everyone's on a pretty tight schedule."

Mary smiled at him and gave him a kiss. She thought 'Tony' looked handsome. She knew the schedule wasn't the only thing which would be tight. She appreciated his honesty and wanted to give him a little reassurance. Maybe she needed to give herself a little reassurance as well. She hadn't done this for quite some time. She felt everyone was just out for themselves.

"We're all friends here." Mary said. "Relax. This happens all the time with people. I'm just out of that scene now. I never really fit in to be honest. It just wasn't my thing, but I'm eager to try this again. It's been a while for me."

John watched as she pushed the sheet down. Everything was just silently 'offered' to him.

"Wow!" John said. "You're really beautiful."

Mary laughed and pulled on her rings. She could see 'Tony' was ready. She wanted to get things started. She slid 'Tony's' underwear off. She was a little surprised at what greeted her. She definitely knew she was going to feel it.

"Oh my, that's a big one." Mary said.

They kissed again and Mary placed John's hands on her rings.

John couldn't resist and played with everything but checked himself after a short time. He wasn't there to force or coerce anyone to do anything.

"Before we get started, I want to make sure this is what you want to do on your own." John said. "There's no obligation or pressure. I won't allow any coercion from anyone. I take this very seriously. You can say 'stop' or 'no' at any time."

Mary kissed him again. It was a slow, deep and loving kiss. She really appreciated his concern for her and what would happen. She believed he would respect any decision she made regarding their personal activity.

"It's really sweet." Mary said. "I'm here because I want to be. I've never heard anyone who was as thoughtful before."

She laid flat on the bed and looked up at John.

It was all John needed to hear. They kissed again and he started to work his way down. He really liked what he saw elsewhere. He concentrated his efforts there. He liked the soft sounds she made as he pleasured her. He thought he would have needed a little more refractory time when he'd finished with Laura. Just with what he'd heard. It was enough to get things going. The new visuals and physical contact only reaffirmed everything.

Mary held her arms open.

"Take me." Mary whispered.

It was all John needed to hear. The 'helper' did its job. He moved over the top of her and started to make his move.

Mary looked at John with wide eyes. They were filled with love. She was a little worried because she'd always experienced a certain amount of discomfort when things got started.

"Go slow." Mary whispered. "I haven't done this in a long time. It's going to be tight for both of us. I've always been that way."

If John wasn't ready before, he was now after he heard her. He carefully made his move.

Mary sucked in her breath and clasped John tightly in her arms.

John felt her nails on his back, but they didn't dig in.

"Easy…." Mary whispered as she gave him a kiss. "Go slow. It's like my first time again, almost."

John slowed and then paused after a few seconds seconds.

Mary got her breath back.

"It feels nice." Mary whispered. "Just start out slow for a few times. I'll be good to go after you do."

Mary kissed him again. The look in her eyes was captivating.

John followed the 'instructions' and everything went smoothly in just a few seconds.

Mary broke the kiss. Everything 'adjusted' quickly. It took less time than she'd thought. Upon some reflection, maybe the 'special girls' had something to do with it. They were pretty aggressive down there. She was ready for more. She actually found everything to be quite pleasurable from the start. It was a first for her. She wanted more.

"I'm good to go." Mary whispered. "Give it to me…."

John was a little surprised when one of her hands went down and she helped herself out as he continued. She was the first one to do it when he was with someone. Her kiss grew wild and she still held him close with one arm. He held her with one arm and fondled her with the other hand.

Mary moved and squirmed under him. It was all very exciting. It was a good thing he'd finished with Laura just a short time ago or he would have already finished. He kept up the pace and increased everything. He wanted to deliver for Mary. He knew a happy customer, was a repeat customer.

Cammy listened outside the door. She was pleased John and Mary enjoyed each other. She was tempted to go in there and join them. She wanted her 'one time' like Cameron promised. She planned to make sure she got it too. The 'Bitch' owed it to her.

She looked back. Camille and Leticia were together already.

Ally and Hanna were sharing again. Since it always looked like Allison and Vanna, it made perfect sense.

She walked up and leaned down next to Camille.

Leticia looked up and saw Cammy and Camille's faces right next to each other. It was a total turn on. They looked identical.

"It looks so hot." Leticia said.

Cammy and Camille kissed. Both of them went to work on Leticia.

The jet flew at a reduced speed towards San Francisco.

John Henry and Summer watched the feed from Toto in the Command Center. It went blank.

"We've lost them." John Henry said.

John Henry checked with CamNet. She'd lost everything too.

Summer didn't think it was terminal. They knew exactly where the team was at right now. If they waited longer, they wouldn't know where they were specifically unless they got some body cam footage or Toto's feed. She'd put some safeguards in place.

"It will come back." Summer said.

John Henry hoped so. They didn't know what was wrong yet. He could only speculate.

"There could have been another blast." John Henry said.

Summer was about to respond when the feed from Toto resumed. The communications with the team happened a few seconds later as did their body cam footage.

"They can broadcast and receive from Toto now if the other link is lost." Summer said. "Toto is the key."

John Henry was relieved to be in contact with the team. He was glad Summer made the relay.

"What's next?" John Henry asked.

Summer checked her monitors. She looked forward to the next phase. She knew caution still needed to be used.

"We need to find out what's behind the curtain." Summer said.

John Henry caught the reference. He was sure 'Dorothy' was going to take the 'Wizard' down her way.

Gail kept watch on her phone. She was pleased when communications returned.

"Wait." Gail said. "Everything's back."

They looked at the feed from Toto. It looked like it'd been knocked over by the blast. It got back up.

The two Grays which passed by them earlier were on the ground too. Toto looked at the Grays. It kept going in the direction it previously was headed. It gave the Grays a wide berth. Both of them had tried to kick it, or threw things at it previously.

Cam wanted to make a decision. She was sure the longer they stayed, the greater the risk became to the entire team.

"I need you three to withdraw." Cam said. "I can take this from here with Toto."

The other three Terminators looked at each other.

Gail wasn't sure if she missed something or not. There seem to be a few missing components to accompany Cam's statement.

"How are we going to leave?" Gail asked.

From past experience, Bob was aware Cameron 'alone' was a bad idea. Cam was 'Cameron' right now, even if she didn't know it.

"We're to remain together." Bob said.

Jim knew they were deep in the mine. It was doubtful they would even be able to make it back out the way they'd entered.

"We may have to fight our way out." Jim said.

Cam didn't want to argue about it. She did want to make her intentions clear.

"It's fine for now." Cam said. "If an energy bubble comes, you three are leaving in it."

Bob wanted to keep going.

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it." Bob said.

Cam checked where Toto was at.

"Let's go." Cam said.

Level Four was laced with caverns and other divergent passageways. They moved over to a system which connected the caverns on the far side from where they could hear people talking and working. They paused and moved back towards the main passageway.

Jim spotted something of significance right away.

"There's a clean room there. It looks finished." Jim said.

Bob looked further down. It seemed like more bad news.

"There's another one almost finished." Bob said.

Cam spotted the men who'd taken the crate earlier. It wasn't the only thing she'd spotted earlier.

"There are those two Grays." Cam said. "Look who they're talking to."

The team all looked and saw there was a female with her back towards them. There was just something familiar about her stance.

Gail recognized her for what she was.

"It's a 'Metal Bitch'." Gail whispered.

Cam wanted to act.

"I want to take her down." Cam said.

John was very excited at the way Mary helped herself. He could feel her make it three times in rapid succession. He wanted to satisfy her.

"I've got it now." John whispered.

Mary tried to speak but was unable to do so. She brought her hand up and held John instead with both arms now.

John increased his actions. He could feel Mary respond right away. He'd been giving it to her easy since she'd wanted to start out slow. Now it was 'game on'. He liked to deliver.

In a few minutes John could feel Mary respond again. It was different this time. Her head moved back and forth and then her neck arched back. Her breathing was even more labored.

John was about to ask her if she wanted him to pull out. He was about to finish. He wanted her to make it first.

Mary could feel John was about to make it. She was too. She wanted 'everything' from him.

"Give it to me…." Mary gasped him tighter to keep him in place.

Seconds later Mary held her breath and made it again. So did John a very short time later. He slowed and then rested. He rolled to his side and brought Mary with him. She still gasped for breath. He rolled all the way over on his back so she was on top now. Her head rested firmly on his chest. He wanted to make sure there was no pressure on her. He was sure she'd stopped breathing a few times.

Mary needed a few seconds for her mind to clear. She wanted to speak but couldn't. She eventually got her vision back and she could breathe again. She'd forgotten how to breathe a few times.

She slowly lifted her head. She moved up a little and kissed John. It was a kiss of love. It was slow, deep and tender. She hadn't been with many men, but she knew something good when she felt it. As far as men went, 'Tony' was tops. No male ever made her 'make it' without her 'help'. 'Tony' just did. It was a first for her. She wanted him to know how special it was for her.

"It was my best time ever…." Mary whispered. "You were incredible."

John felt Mary hold him tighter. It felt like they were about to melt together. Her heart raced even faster than his.

Cammy finished up with Camille and Leticia a few minutes ago. They were about six minutes from their descent. They would need to get buckled up within ten minutes. They would be on the ground in fifteen minutes. It was time to get everyone ready.

She was outside the Executive Suite when John and Mary finished. It all sounded so beautiful to her. She would make sure she gave Cameron a copy of her files. She wasn't sure if she would do it indirectly like it was a 'mistake', or be bold about it and do it overtly to rub it in her face.

Sheila popped out of the Master Suite and motioned for Cammy to take over with Laura and get her ready. She carried John's clothes.

Cammy took one look back. The other girls already started to get dressed. She entered the room with Laura and knocked off a quickie for her and got her ready.

Sheila entered the Executive Suite and watched Mary move off of John. She handed him his clothes.

"I've got it from here, love." Sheila said. "We'll be on the ground in a short time. It will be a rapid descent."

John wanted to try the shower on the plane. It didn't seem like there was enough time.

He looked back. Both of Mary's arms were out to her sides with a fist full of the sheet bunched up in each hand. Her back was arched up and her head moved wildly from side to side. He could see Sheila worked on her intently. He knew what she was after. It actually excited him some. Mary made it one more time very vocally and collapsed again on the bed.

Cammy soon came in with Sheila's clothes and her clothes. She and Sheila dressed in front of John as sexy as they could. He thought it was almost as hot as watching them strip.

"We'll get Mary ready for the landing." Cammy said. "I don't think she's ever gone quite so far before."

John looked back before he went out into the hall. Mary smiled at him and blew him a kiss. Laura was right there when he went out into the hall. She came over and gave him a long kiss.

"You can have as much as you want, anytime you want it." Laura whispered in his ear.

John wasn't really sure what to say. He didn't want to 'thank' them but he did want to.

"I had a really great time too." John said.

He felt the girls were both dynamite in bed. They were totally different from the girls in the Resistance. Then again, all the girls were different from each other in their responses and participation.

Hanna got everyone seated once they were all dressed.

Leticia was next to John now.

"You're all mine on the way back." Leticia whispered. "I can hardly wait."

A few minutes later Sheila emerged from the Executive Suite. Cammy assisted Mary out. She quickly regained her bearings.

Mary and Laura sat across from him. They both looked at him and smiled.

Cammy looked at the three girls and smiled.

'It's two down and one to go.' Cammy thought. 'Take that you 'Bitch'.'

Mary, Laura and Leticia didn't know the Metal girls 'conditioned' them while they'd slept on the ship. They already wanted to be with 'Tony'. The 'conditioning' made them want it more. They were conditioned to want 'everything' as well. So far it was two for two.

The jet made a steep descent once everyone was strapped in. They were on the ground at exactly the time specified. CamNet cleared all air traffic for them. The jet taxied over to a group of hangars. There were several SUVs waiting for them.

Wes and Ned would remain with the plane, service it, and the rooms.

Dan and Frank would take one of the SUVs and head out on their own. They were to be a backup team in the shadows. They were also to run point for Sheila and her private vendetta.

CamNet already compiled a list of targets and their locations.

Cammy, Ally and Sheila would go with Leticia. Camille and Hanna would go with John, Mary and Laura. There were different destinations for each group.

With the planned detour and the delay in the flight to San Francisco for the executive transport, CamNet, at Young Allison's request, was able to get Steve and Tom to the Bay Area. They flew there on a small private jet. They would shadow John's group for extra muscle. Young Allison said she didn't want to make a big deal about it, but she needed to make sure John was protected.

Cam looked at the back of the female Terminator.

"I want to put the grab on her if we can." Cam said.

Gail was worried about the captive they'd heard the Grays refer to.

"What about the female detainee?" Gail asked.

Cam didn't know what her status was. It was probably not good. It wasn't their primary mission. Skynet is what they were there for. They needed to find out how sophisticated it was, and what other things it had its hooks into.

"Let's see what turns up." Cam said. "Our primary mission comes first."

There was another blast and the ground shook. It was less intense than the last one was.

Bob felt where the direction of the blast came from. It wasn't near them. They were on Level Four now.

"It was on a lower level." Bob said.

The lower level wasn't on their charts. They'd viewed files of Toto down there before.

They could hear an electric whine. A few seconds later, an electric tractor came into view. It towed half a dozen carriages, or cars, filled with rock. It headed for the main shaft. Soon after it passed, there was another one headed in the direction the first one came from. It was empty. It stopped and parked between where they were at, and the female Terminator.

The team carried a few plastic explosive charges. They each carried Thermite grenades. This was a recon. They couldn't carry enough explosives to bring the mine down with them. They intended to let the larger power cells do it, or they would have a nuclear 'package' delivered.

Cam told the rest of the group to hold. She moved closer to where the Terminator was at. She passed by the parked chain of cars. The Terminator moved into one of the clean rooms. She approached cautiously.

A Gray was headed in Cam's direction. She moved back between the parked cars for cover. No sooner was she between two of the cars when there was a jolt and they started to move. The Gray was almost alongside her. She put her feet on the drawbar between the last two cars and crouched down low. The car passed by the Gray and picked up a little speed. There was nowhere for her to go. She felt the car start down the incline to the new area, Level Five. She didn't know what she was about to find. She didn't know who would find her.

Gail, Bob and Jim all watched as Cam was whisked away.

"Beautiful…." Bob said.

It was a term he'd picked up from John. It was normally used when something went wrong which shouldn't have gone wrong.

Gail knew they needed to take some action. They needed to keep track of Cam.

"John Henry, send Toto down to Level Five at once." Gail said.

John Henry and Summer watched what happened from Cam's body cam.

"It wasn't part of the plan." John Henry said.

Summer went over what limited footage of Level Five they'd gleaned from Toto.

"Cam's body cam is still active." Summer said. "I guess we're about to find out what's down there after all. I know there will be at least one more Terminator."

John Henry figured the same thing as well. Someone was handling the nitro down there and it wasn't a Gray.

"I think it's an accurate assumption." John Henry said.

It really seemed like going from the frying pan into the fire to Summer.

She was ready to go with several different contingency plans at a moment's notice. There was a backup plan for the backup plan.

She liked to cover all the bases. She'd already learned the unpredictable could happen at any moment of time on an operation. Certain things could be planned for, other things couldn't be. There needed to be flexibility as to what could be done, when it needed to be done.

The Terminator tossed another Thermite grenade behind him as he exited the room. There was one more area where the drone picked up heat signatures just a short time ago. He hoped there weren't any female detainees. The building was well engulfed already.

He was a little surprised when a screaming burning figure ran from the counting room. A silenced round from his M9 ended their suffering. He wasn't sure where they came from. They must have been hiding.

As he approached the last room, an armed man appeared at the door. He reached up and grabbed him by the neck and turned him around. He pushed him back into the room facing forward. There were gunshots almost immediately. He could feel the man he held take the rounds. He hadn't terminated him. His associates did. He terminated them in turn. It only took two more seconds to terminate everyone in the room. He was glad his sheath remained undamaged.

It looked like the office of the person in charge of the facility. He checked behind him to make sure there wasn't anyone else who might appear. He didn't spot anyone. He quickly moved to the three men in the room and retrieved their phones. He left a Thermite grenade behind him as he exited the room.

He checked the drone image overhead. No one exited or entered the building since he'd gone inside. So far it looked like a clean sweep. He made his way out the back. It was the same way he'd entered. He tossed the bodies which were outside into the flaming inferno. The fire would destroy all the evidence. There would be no emergency response.

The drone picked up some movement from the other satellite location located a block away. Someone there must have heard the gunfire from the office area a short while ago. They would have seen the smoke rising from the location if they looked. It appeared they looked.

Two men approached the building. It originally looked like they were going to go to the front. At the last minute, they went down the side street and were now in the alley. They cautiously approached the armored car. It was a flaming wreck.

The Terminator used the voice of one of the men from the other satellite location he'd taken out.

"Hurry up and get over here." The Terminator said.

Both of the men hurried past the burning armored car.

He shot both of them with his silenced M9. He tossed their bodies inside on top of the others. They were already burning.

The Terminator headed for the other satellite location. The low drone scan earlier showed there were still two more individuals there.

The first man looked at the crates being loaded. He didn't know what was in all of them specifically. What he did know, was most of them were subassemblies for different types of HK equipment.

He looked at the two HK Tracks which hadn't been loaded yet. He was still worried about what the other man indicated happened at their associated locations. He left them behind. He headed back towards where the technicians were at. He saw a flash of light as he approached. There was a loud noise as well.

"Did you see that?" The first technician asked.

The second technician was standing right next to him.

"How could I miss it?" The second technician asked.

The first man approached them.

"What just happened here?" The first man asked.

The first technician scratched his head.

"I really wish I knew." The first technician said.

The second technician shrugged his shoulders.

"We gave it more power." The second technician said.

"We moved it over to the wall like you suggested." The first technician said. "A black square appeared in the middle of the test area. You can see we marked what we think will open."

The first man didn't think it was something they should fool with. They were short on personnel with all of the recent setbacks.

"Maybe you should try for a smaller opening to start with. You can always turn it off and enlarge it later." The first man said.

The two technicians looked at each other. Maybe it was something they could try. It might require no more power than they'd just tried to use. It didn't feel very safe to either one of them to use such high tension power in such an uncontrolled manner.

"We'll give it a try." The second technician said.

The first man moved off. He really hoped the technicians knew what they were doing. There were other parts of the building he needed to check.

The female Fanatic and Jill quickly entered the building and headed for the crates. They spotted two men working with some type of electrical device. They watched as they moved it over towards a wall. They didn't have a clue as to what they were doing. They could also hear a forklift running somewhere nearby. There was no mistaking the engine noise and the hydraulic sound of the forks being raised and lowered.

They carefully started over in the direction of the forklift. Almost immediately the female Fanatic spotted someone coming. She motioned for Jill to get down.

Jill caught Jackie's warning. She quickly ducked down.

The man who they'd spotted twice before was headed back towards them. There was a flash of white and a loud noise behind them. It was from the location where they'd spotted the other two men. The man who'd been heading towards them changed his direction and headed over to where the other two men were at. It was a close one.

They continued to where they heard the forklift working. They could soon see it in action.

Jill felt her gut tighten.

"Those are the other two men." Jill said. "The guy with the beard would always flip me over. He did it every time."

The female Fanatic gave Jill's arm a reassuring squeeze.

"It's usually something guys who are small down there like to do." The female Fanatic said. "We had one guy like that in my unit one time. He couldn't get off in the proper place. Because he was smaller, he needed something a little tighter. I never saw him with anyone but a female. I'm not sure what goes on in some people's heads."

Jill touched her Beretta.

"I want to kill both of them myself." Jill said.

The female Fanatic knew they needed to kill everyone. She spotted the two HK Tracks parked near the trucks. It was what she wanted to get to herself first. The men would have to wait.

"I need to see if I can reprogram one of those HK Tracks." The female Fanatic said. "They will be able to help us deal with the rest of the group."

Jill knew they needed to play it smart. She didn't really care if she died at this point or not. If she could kill the other two men first, she would die happy. She also knew she told Jackie she would support her in her mission.

The female Fanatic and Jill moved close to the first HK Track. The two truck drivers would need to wait before they were dealt with.

Lena and Tina moved away from the outbuilding and headed towards the big building. They didn't want to be spotted out in the open by anyone. They hadn't detected any external security cameras yet. It didn't mean there weren't any. Caution still needed to be used. They made their way up to the wall by the electrical equipment.

They were just about to slip inside the door when there was a bright flash of light and a loud noise. The electrical equipment near where they were at began to hum much louder than it already did.

"I'm not sure what they're up to inside." Lena said.

Tina listened as the electrical equipment returned to its previous decibel level.

"They're overloading the equipment out here." Tina said. "It doesn't appear to even be hooked up correctly. We need to make sure we don't get too close to it in case there's any type of arcing."

Lena understood the implication. They could become incapacitated. It was possible the electrical shock from the high voltage equipment might not allow them to reboot in a timely manner.

CamNet's two Terminators made their way to the door and opened it slightly.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Temporal Mission:

Past Timeline:

November 25 1963

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Cameron and Young Allison continued to practice shooting.

The worker continued to restock all the machines with boxes of clay pigeons.

Young Allison wanted to take things a little further.

"I don't think it would hurt to let the worker try a magazine full of ammunition." Young Allison said.

Cameron already made contingency plans if things worked out with the worker and the shooting area. She thought to let him try it one time would be a good start. She wanted to get his interest up in their firearms. She could see he was plenty interested in them.

The next time the worker was close. Cameron called him over. She set the Hi-Power on the piece of cloth she'd brought with her. It was locked open and the magazine was next to it. She quickly loaded fifteen rounds for the worker. He'd previously used a 1911. She told him everything was very much the same. She thought the slide release was a little easier on the Hi-Power as compared to the 1911. There was a little more leverage involved with it. The takedown of firearm was much simpler and faster.

He fired the first two shots and missed. After the third shot, he was able to hit more targets. He said it took him a moment to get acclimated to the pistol. He was very pleased they'd allowed him to shoot their new firearms.

Cameron was mindful of the time. She needed to keep track of a schedule. She asked the worker if he owned any firearms.

He said all he had was a .410 shotgun and a .22 caliber pistol.

Cameron tilted her head slightly.

"Is it .22 Long Rifle, Long or Short?" Cameron asked.

The worker scratched his head.

"I think it will shoot all three. It's a revolver." The worker said. "I just use .22 Long Rifle because it's cheaper. You think it would be the other way around but it's not. I picked up a few boxes at White Front the other day. It was on sale."

Cameron collected all of the fired brass from the ground whenever Young Allison shot. She didn't want to leave the 9MM casings there for anyone else to find and wonder why they were there.

The worker watched her pick up the casings for the fifteen rounds he'd fired.

"Do you reload?" The worker asked.

Cameron was aware Cammy and Sheila did do some hand loading. They used some lighter weight bullets with some additional powder. They'd created their own hollow point rounds. The ammunition was loaded to 'Plus P' standards.

What she didn't know, was when Cammy and Sheila tested the rounds, there was a man who took an interest in what they were doing. Cammy explained what they'd done and said they were basically 'Super Velocity' rounds. He said he'd toyed with the idea in his head but hadn't actually turned it into a reality. He said he would give it a try on his own. The man would start his own line of ammunition based on the concept. It became very popular in the Sixties and early Seventies. Other manufacturers took notice and attempted to emulate his products. The domestic manufacturers wouldn't sell him brass casings. They didn't like the share of the market he controlled. He needed to turn to European manufacturers to procure them.

Cameron and Young Allison thanked the worker. He was very appreciative of the personal tip and the fact they'd paid for all of the supplies, as well as their admission fee. He told him they could come even earlier than they had today the next time.

"We'll pay the admission fee each time we come." Young Allison said. "We thank you again for assisting us."

The worker remembered 'Cindy' mentioned she did specialized shooting.

"Maybe next time you can show me some of your 'trick shooting' routine." The worker said.

Young Allison thought it would foster goodwill.

"She'll show you more next time." Young Allison said.

The attendant couldn't decide which one he liked better, 'Cindy' or 'Emily'. Even though they looked identical, he could tell they were different.

Cameron and Young Allison went back the way they'd come. They moved along the side of the fish ponds and across the back of the property. They crossed over a small gulch when they'd come. They needed to cross over to go back.

Young Allison looked around the rocky landscape.

"I see there's a little bit of water in here." Young Allison said. "This doesn't look like a place which would have much water."

Cameron was aware of some difficulties experienced when long tunnels were constructed, such as Tunnel 25 near Newhall and Tunnel 26 in Chatsworth.

"There are a few natural springs around here." Cameron said. "The majority of them are underground. When Tunnel 26 was constructed they pierced more than one of them. Some of the water you see here is from inside of the tunnel. There's a drainage system to remove it from the interior."

Young Allison looked at the rocky landscape again. It was hard to believe there was water in the hills. Most of the vegetation there was dried out from summer. She could see why wildfires were a problem in the area.

They could clearly see the embankment where the railroad tracks ran between Tunnel 26 and Tunnel 27.

Young Allison wondered if they were going to pass through Tunnel 26 and go to Santa Susana.

"Are we going to walk through the long tunnel?" Young Allison asked.

Cameron was mindful of the time. She thought they could do it later on.

"We can do it another time. It's about a mile and a third long." Cameron said. "I want to go back to the curve leading to the east porthole of Tunnel 27."

Young Allison figured there was a specific reason.

They walked up the service road which led to the railroad tracks. They quickly made their way back along the tracks towards Tunnel 27.

Young Allison hoped to avoid any surprises inside the tunnel.

"Are there any trains coming?" Young Allison asked.

Cameron listened intently. She focused her hearing to the chime of a M5 or P3 air horn.

"None will arrive before we're through the tunnel." Cameron said.

Young Allison would have liked to have been able to see the one side from the other side like on Tunnel 28.

They made their way through quickly.

Cameron led them up onto the rocks which looked down on the uphill grade.

Young Allison soon heard an air horn in the distance.

"Is it at De Soto or Lassen?" Young Allison asked.

Cameron had heard the air horn two crossings before the one at De Soto. She'd heard the crossing at Corbin Avenue and at Reseda Boulevard. There would be additional crossings added at Tampa Avenue, Winnetka Avenue and Mason Avenue later on. Reseda Boulevard and nearby Parthenia Street would receive an under crossing.

"It was De Soto." Cameron said. "The train will be here in approximately eight minutes. It's right on time. It left Los Angeles Union Station at 8:15 AM. It's Train 99, the Coast Daylight."

Young Allison knew it used to be one of the premier trains on the Southern Pacific. It introduced its own unique paint scheme. It was adopted by several other Southern Pacific passenger trains. Not only were the passenger cars painted in Daylight Red and Daylight Orange, the locomotives were as well. It included both steam and diesel locomotives. Everything began to change after 1958 when more universal standards, and colors, were adopted system wide.

They waited in anticipation of the train's arrival. They heard the air horn blow for three more crossings.

"It will be in back of Stony Point and through Tunnel 28 in approximately one minute." Cameron said. "I can hear four cycle locomotives in the consist. They will be Alco PA units. Most likely they will be PA2 locomotives. There's an EMD unit running with them."

Young Allison could see the train in the distance as it made the curve to come up the grade. She watched it grow closer. The regular headlight and the oscillating headlight were very visible, even in the daytime. In just a short time the locomotive started around the curve to go into Tunnel 27.

There were two PA units. They ran elephant style, they were followed by an E7B unit. The Alco units gave off a distinctive sound as compared to the EMD unit. The Alco units sported a single 16 cylinder turbocharged 2,250 horsepower prime mover. The EMD unit was equipped with two 12 cylinder 1,000 horsepower normally aspirated prime movers. It produced 2,000 horsepower total.

Young Allison was thrilled to spot several of the passenger cars painted in their former colors.

"Look, there are a few Daylight cars mixed in with the rest." Young Allison said. "I really would have liked to have seen the entire train painted like that. I guess we're about four or five years too late."

Cameron knew it was something she could rectify. She wasn't going to suggest it though. She wanted to be careful with the use of the TDE. She didn't want any accidents.

It made her think about a senseless railroad accident which occurred a few months ago.

"Earlier this year in March, someone purposely derailed the Coast Daylight just west of Corbin Avenue." Cameron said. "There were several injuries but no fatalities."

Young Allison wondered how something like that could happen.

"It's a shame." Young Allison said. "Why did they do it? Did they pile something up on the tracks?"

Cameron wasn't sure if she believed the story as it was reported. She was sure it was more involved than anyone admitted to, especially the perpetrators.

"No." Cameron said. "It was rather elaborate. They broke the lock off of a switch stand and threw a switch. They ran the train into a dead end siding. They bent the switch position indicator back to the position to show the switch was aligned for the mainline. They also hooked up jumper cables to complete the circuit so the block signal indicated the mainline was clear. A couple of teenage boys admitted to doing it. There was often speculation there were actually adults involved."

Young Allison thought it sounded pretty sophisticated for a couple of teenage kids. They would have needed to possess knowledge about the track circuits and the position indicator for the switch.

"You said there was a fire right here in Tunnel 27 the month before the derailment." Young Allison said. "I bet they were connected."

Cameron tilted her head slightly. It seemed very plausible to her.

It was time for Young Allison and Cameron to head home. They would take a different route.

I Think I'm Up

Many people go through
Some type of breakup
No one wants to experience
Their own little world blow up

All they can usually do
Is look at the next lineup
Maybe with a new group
They will find a new hookup

Nothing may sprout or develop
With the next roundup
It's a reminder to them
There should have been a backup

Things may start out fast or slow
There may not be a buildup
What each may actually seek
Is more than just a pickup

When there is a startup
There will soon be a close up
When things are good to go
I think I'm up

Nobody