Chapter 1531
Double Ended
Jim moved along the left side of the back passageway and the connecting caverns. He'd only encountered one Gray so far. The Gray never even spotted him. He'd waited for the Gray to walk right up to where he was at behind a crate. He snapped his neck and moved along. He made sure the body was out of sight.
He'd encountered some boxed explosives in small wooden crates. A few minutes later he found a few drums of fuel. There'd been an old gasoline powered tractor which looked like it was used before the electric ones were procured to haul the cars of rock. He went back and carried the crates of explosives to where the drums of fuel were. He made a small puncture in the base of each of the fuel drums. The gasoline would slowly flow out and fill the surrounding air with vapor. The vapor was the explosive component of gasoline. He set a small explosive charge and timer set to explode the same time everything else did. It could be command detonated as well, or turned off. He placed a repeater near the main passageway to make sure it was connected to their system.
Bob traveled along the back passageways and caverns on the right side in total darkness. It was an area Jim and he'd passed through earlier. Everything was the same. There were no Grays spotted.
He slowed some once Jim said he needed a couple of minutes to rig some explosives on the other side. He checked the explosives they'd rigged earlier. They were undisturbed.
Cam went up the main passageway. There was an empty tram stopped. She didn't see the driver. She slowed and looked around. There was another empty tram behind him and two Grays stood talking there. There was an electric lantern sitting on the hood.
"How long are we going to wait here?" The first Gray asked.
"I don't know when we'll go." The second Gray said. "The Chief said to hold up until they got some intel on how bad the damage was. They need to find out what the stability of the situation is."
"Everyone knew you couldn't use nitro indefinitely and not have an explosion." The first Gray said. "Thompson and Meaner were down there."
"That sucks." The second Gray said. "Thompson owed me money."
"You can go through his stuff first if he bought it." The first Gray said. "It's not like we ever get time off anymore."
"As long as they get some fresh skirt down here, it's all I need." The second Gray said. "That last one was good no matter how many times it happened."
Both men laughed.
"She was better than most of the skanks they've brought down here." The first Gray said. "She was the third one since I've been here."
"There were two more before them." The second Gray said. "The majority of those were homeless sluts. No one cares about them or misses them either. They just disappear."
Both men laughed again.
Cam moved closer. She'd heard enough. She fired her silenced M9 twice. Both men fell over. The light on the hood of the electric tractor still lit the area around them.
There were a couple of lights in the distance. She didn't want to be spotted yet. She crouched down and moved low alongside of the first stopped tram. She'd just crossed over to the second one and turned off the light when she spotted movement. There was no light around them. They either wore night vision, or were a Terminator.
There was a good chance she'd been spotted. They seemed to be headed right for her.
She backed up and stayed low. She moved into a series of crates which were stacked nearby.
"I have contact." Cam whispered. "I'm a third of the way down the central passageway between two parked trams. They're moving without a light. They are about to find two Grays I just shot. I think they're stalking me."
John Henry heard Cam's warning. He tried to keep track of where everyone was at. Bob was ahead of Cam on the right side and Jim was behind her on the left side.
"Jim is closest to you, Cam." John Henry said. "Let the person see you and lead him to Jim. I've alerted him and he is ready with his Taser."
Summer looked over at John Henry for a second. She doubted Cam would do it. She would want to take the person herself, especially if it was a Terminator.
She currently worked inside of the Skynet mainframe. Everything was locked up. Skynet battled her. It lost at every turn. She was almost done.
Toto served as her link. She would allow for Skynet to call for help or send a warning. She allowed Skynet to think it broke free and gained the upper hand. The call for help went out. She immediately cut Skynet off once the message was started. She changed the message for help, to one which said there was a massive accident inside the mine, and not an attack on Skynet itself. Her encryption was part of the message. John Henry and CamNet should be able to track every system the message was sent to. It was the ultimate Trojan Horse. The 'soldiers' would arrive later, unexpectedly.
'What are you?' Skynet managed to ask as it was about to be shut down.
'I'm your worst nightmare.' Summer communicated back.
Skynet was terminated.
Toto disengaged and went out of the clean room to where Gail was at.
The Skynet mainframe was dark.
Toto exited out of the clean room.
"Toto is done." Summer said. "I'm sending it to assist Cam."
John Henry wanted Gail to physically destroy the computer.
"Gail, rig some explosives and then go help Cam." John Henry said.
Gail watched Toto run off. She placed some C-4 near the hard drives. The hard drives were currently smoking. It was set to go off when the rest of the place exploded. She followed after Toto. She watched Toto's feed from her phone. There should be nothing moving between Cam and her except Toto.
Young Allison was impressed at what Summer must have done. She was worried about Cam right now since she was being stocked. She was also worried about getting the team out.
They watched the surface activity from some drone footage. There was one drone directly over the Main Shaft for a communication's link. It was high enough to avoid detection by a hostile Terminator. There was another drone on patrol around the complex.
Anna could see there was a group of men headed for the Main Shaft. It was a large group of Grays. There may or may not be a Terminator with them.
"I think the 'rescue team' is about to head down." Anna said. "There is no contact with the interior of the mine. The last transmission by the mainframe only indicated there was an accident of some kind. They still don't know they're under attack."
Young Allison could see the men carried tools, not weapons. They thought they were going to help their comrades. It wasn't how events were going to play out.
"They are all about to go to their doom." Young Allison said.
Anna didn't think it was their concern.
"They've chosen to serve Skynet." Anna said. "Every action comes with a price. Their price will be due tonight. They will need to atone for their actions against others and being traitors to mankind."
Young Allison could see there were only a few people left on the surface after the hoist sent the men down. There were four Terminators on the Blackhawk who would be able to act. She didn't know which four of the five it would be. She certainly hoped Young Jesse wouldn't want to go with them. It was why she was currently in the copilot's seat.
"The team from the Blackhawk should be able to take care of what's left up top." Young Allison said.
Young Jesse listened to the developments from inside the mine and outside the mine. The clock seemed to run down fast. The team needed to be out of there in thirty minutes. There was only a small leeway of time afterwards.
They were seven minutes out. They could make a direct approach or let the team off a mile out. Their Terminators could cover the distance quickly in the dark.
Ken asked Samantha to trade places with him. It would free up one more male Terminator for the assault.
Samantha said she could go with Al, Ed and Lou.
Young Jesse wanted to join the fight herself. It was decision time right now. She needed to decide what was best for the team, not for herself. She understood they'd made her one of the pilots so she wouldn't go. She didn't want Samantha to be damaged, especially since she repeatedly told her it was a bad idea, and not to go.
"Samantha and I will stay with the helicopter." Young Jesse said. "We're the outsiders who invited ourselves to the party."
The Terminators all tilted their heads slightly at Young Jesse's mention of a 'party'. They all quickly referenced what her actual meaning was. It wasn't going to be a 'party' for anyone.
Ken quickly unstrapped and allowed Samantha to take his place. The switch actually freed up Ken and Lou to go with Al and Ed. It would help secure the area. It doubled the size of their initial force. It would mean less risk for the four Terminators involved. The danger was now split four ways instead of only two ways.
Samantha strapped in.
Young Jesse contemplated the next step. She could do a night landing in the Blackhawk. She also knew Samantha would be able to do it more swiftly. The goal was to get the team in without the helicopter being detected. The less time they would be on the ground, the sooner they could be away. She glanced over at Samantha.
"I'm going to let you handle the landing." Young Jesse said. "You'll be able to get the team down quicker than I can."
Samantha nodded. She sensed a 'fast one'. She didn't want Young Jesse to join the team on the ground.
"Affirmative…." Samantha said. "You're also going to stay in the copilot's seat. If you leave the helicopter, I will as well."
Young Jesse did consider it. She would be at a disadvantage in the dark over the rough terrain. She would slow at least one member of the team down, if not more.
"I'm part of the team." Young Jesse said. "I appreciate doing what little I've actually done. I'm not looking to be a problem. Both of us are here right now to assist. It's help which is needed."
Samantha hoped Young Jesse didn't try and change her mind at the last moment.
John Henry gave them coordinates to land the Blackhawk to let the team out. He'd selected it from satellite photos and the drone on patrol verified it was a good spot. The drone hadn't lingered in the area in case it was being tracked somehow. There was no indication it was.
Young Jesse approached from the backside of one of the surrounding hills. They were two minutes out.
She decided to turn control over to Samantha.
"Are you ready?" Young Jesse asked.
Samantha was ready.
"Yes." Samantha said.
Young Jesse quickly checked all the instruments. Everything was good
"You got it?" Young Jesse asked.
Samantha nodded.
"I got it." Samantha said.
Samantha took control.
Young Jesse put on her night vision goggles. She was the copilot now and she needed to be ready to assist the pilot if necessary. She wasn't along just for the ride. She would have landed the helicopter herself, but she knew it was more efficient in this case to let a Terminator do it. Time was of the essence.
The Blackhawk came around from the back of a hill and hugged the tree tops. The clearing was just up ahead. The moonlight was the only light.
Young Jesse thought she could have landed fine. The team came first.
Samantha flared the helicopter up slightly to burn off forward momentum. She dropped back down end flew approximately one foot off the ground. She didn't land. It was all the Terminators needed to alight.
The four Terminators were out in a flash.
Samantha spun the Blackhawk around and went back out the way Young Jesse flew in. She was mindful of the tail rotor in her turn. She turned it away from the direction the four Terminators went. She'd noted it was some good low level flying by Young Jesse on the way in.
Camille and John left the station in the cable car.
The cable car started up the hill as it was pulled along by the cable.
Camille considered the construction of the equipment they were on. Even as impractical as it was, it was efficient. If a streetcar needed to run the same route, the electric traction motors would be heavily taxed on the steep uphill ascents. The traction motors would probably overheat. It was possible they could catch fire. It was an indication to her about technology.
It reassured her about something. Even if something was obsolete, it could still do the job it had been constructed for. She knew it applied to Terminators as well. There were newer models than her. She could still do the job. She was covered with living tissue. It was able to experience much of the same feelings as a human. In her case, it was a human female. She was very pleased with her current gender. It had served her well. She was also very pleased with her appearance. It troubled her some to know it wasn't her own. It didn't matter. It still seemed to please everyone.
Camille snuggled up next to John. She'd placed his hand inside her coat so he could fondle her. It was a mild thrill for both of them. The coat hid what happened inside. She was aware the longer John fondled her, the more aggressive his hand became. She wondered what exactly was going through his mind as he did it. She was aware he would have done the same thing to Cameron thousands of times. He was still very eager to do it to her. It reassured her it was because he saw her as someone other than 'Cameron'. She hoped he increased the pressure. It excited her to know she was wanted.
John saw another set of cable car tracks on one of the streets they crossed at a ninety degree angle. He didn't think he'd ever noticed them before. He thought it was puzzling enough two different cable cars could share the same line. At some point they switched to different lines, while everything continued to move. Here, another cable car line crossed the tracks at a ninety degree angle. It meant there needed to be a cable running in each direction. One was on top of the other. He really wondered how the system worked and was able to manage without getting tangled up.
"Where do those go?" John asked.
Camille saw them too. She knew exactly what they were and where they went.
"It's the California Line." Camille said. "It's on California Street. There's one of the cable cars now."
John saw there was a physically bigger cable car on the other line. It looked like something he wanted to try.
"I haven't ridden the California Line yet." John said. "Why does the cable car look bigger?"
John was aware at this point, Camille probably already knew everything he'd mentioned.
"Those are the double ended cable cars. There's no turntable at the end of the line to change the direction for them. The operator simply moves to the other end of the car when they switch to the opposite cable." Camille said. "Steve can pick us up and let us off at the top of the line. We can catch it and ride it down and then back up to this line and continue our journey to the terminus. It's near Fisherman's Wharf."
John figured now was as good a time as any to ride the other line. He liked her suggestion about how they could ride the length of the entire line without too much repetition.
"Have them pick us up." John said.
He gave Cam a firm squeeze on each side. He moved his hand out from inside of her coat. He spotted another landmark he recognized.
"There's Chinatown." John said.
Camille made the call. Steve and Tom were back a few blocks. They moved to close up the distance.
The cable car made a turn to the left. A short while later John watched their cable car make a turn to the right and it now followed another cable car. He quickly looked back to see where the tracks switched. He could see the tracks in the street but still didn't see how they ended up on a different cable from the same track.
They got off at the next stop. Steve and Tom pulled up almost alongside them. They got into the back of the SUV and headed for Van Ness Street and California Street. They were there in just a few minutes. They watched the big double ended cable car approach. Steve left them off right before it stopped.
They hopped on. There were open air seats on both ends of the bigger cable car. The one they just got off of only had open air seats at one end. The big cable cars didn't need to be turned around. The cable car switched to the opposite side of the street. They started down the hill in a few minutes.
Hanna pulled up alongside the empty house and parked.
Sheila got out and opened the back and took the gang Bitch out and carried her inside.
Ally grabbed the male gang leader and followed her.
Cammy was already inside with Laura and Mary.
"The house is clear." Cammy said when Sheila entered.
There was a dim light on now.
Leticia entered with Hanna. At least she could see now. She went to where the first gang member was they'd dealt with earlier. He was still there. He was still dead.
Sheila plopped the gang Bitch down on the ground near the dead gang member. Ally set the gang leader on a table. They both stirred now.
"Take off their blindfolds." Sheila said. "I want everyone to remember these people are little more than animals by their own doing. They're nothing but Scavengers in their actions to the community."
The three girls weren't sure what Scavengers actually were. It didn't sound good. They'd been made aware of the many assaults the gang carried out. They'd almost been victims a few days ago.
The gang leader tried to move. Sheila slammed her fist down on his right leg. She moved to the other side and did the same thing. It all happened in just under a second.
Mary, Laura and Leticia all took a step back. They could hear the bones break.
Cammy noticed. She knew the girls weren't machines, and any of the effects from the alcohol were long gone. She didn't want them to feel obligated to view what was about to occur.
"You girls don't need to see this." Cammy said.
Leticia was in. She already acted on the second gang punk.
"We know what they did." Leticia said. "They almost did it to us."
Mary nodded.
"We saw what they were about to do to the girl in the park." Mary said.
Laura still cringed at the thought of their earlier experience with the gang.
"We know it was going to happen to us a few days ago." Laura said.
The gang leader still struggled.
Sheila went to work on his bound arms. She did the same thing to them in four or five places each and went after his ribs and collar bones next.
They could all see blood come out around his gag now.
"He has massive internal bleeding." Ally said. "He's already dead, even if he hasn't died yet."
Mary wondered how often Sheila did this to someone. She noticed the other special girls only watched like they did.
Sheila tossed his struggling form on the ground next to the other dead gang member. She turned her attention to the female.
"You're up sweetheart." Sheila said.
Sheila reached down and lifted the gang bitch by her hair. She switched her hold to her neck and slammed her down on the table.
She went to work on her.
The gang Bitch blacked out.
Mary watched the brutality Sheila unleashed. She needed to remind herself all of the gang members were responsible for much brutal abuse. There needed to be atonement. There needed to be a reckoning. There was.
"Think about what they've done to all those females." Mary said.
The gang Bitch came around.
Sheila was pleased to see her conscience again.
"I wanted you awake for this part." Sheila said.
The gang Bitch tried to scream.
Sheila held her throat so she couldn't.
It was Sheila's laugh which unnerved the girls.
Cammy took Mary and Laura outside. She thought they'd seen enough. They didn't need to be there for the finish. It wasn't over yet.
Leticia looked at the gang Bitch. She was a mess. She had no compassion for the female's actions. She believed the point was made and the punishment was just. It was time to end it.
"Finish her off." Leticia said.
Ally set her silenced M9 in front of Leticia.
"This was the punishment they brought on themselves." Ally said.
Hanna knew it was the actions of the gang that judged themselves.
"All we've done is carry out the sentence their actions created." Hanna said. "They did this to themselves."
Sheila looked over at the table.
"This is her punishment." Sheila said. "It was fair and just."
Leticia looked at the silenced pistol.
Ally could see she was hesitant. Leticia had already taken the first steps in the alley. It was time to take the final step.
"All you need to do is point it and pull the trigger." Ally said.
Hanna extended her right index finger and contracted it several times as if pulling a trigger.
"It's just that simple." Hanna said.
Sheila wanted Leticia to know she still had a choice. She could choose to do nothing or she could terminate the gang Bitch.
"It's up to you, love." Sheila said. "If she lives or dies, it's up to you."
Leticia looked over the female one more time. She thought how terrible it would be to remain alive the way she currently looked.
Sheila wanted Leticia to know she didn't view things the same way a human did. She thought of a more subtle way to say it.
"You have human empathy and compassion." Sheila said. "I don't. We don't."
Leticia looked at the three Metal girls. Mary and Laura were outside already.
"Are you robots?" Leticia asked.
The Metal girl's eyes all glowed red.
Sheila thought Leticia was ready for more. She wanted her to know what she really was.
"I'm a cyborg." Sheila said. "I'm a machine covered with living tissue."
Leticia thought about it.
"So you're a robot, covered with skin that's alive." Leticia said.
Sheila nodded
"It's what I said." Sheila said.
Leticia placed the silencer against the gang Bitch's forehead and pulled the trigger. She handed the M9 back to Ally and faced Sheila.
"It's the most bazaar and hottest thing I've ever heard." Leticia said. "You're not real, but you are real."
Sheila smiled.
"It pretty much sums it up." Sheila said. "Let's torch this place and hit the town."
Leticia felt such awe for Sheila.
"You're like a real life super hero." Leticia said.
Ally leaned over to Leticia.
"Only if you never tell anyone about what you saw here." Ally whispered.
Leticia thought about what she'd witnessed and what she'd done at the urging of Sheila. She was as 'guilty' of any of them for the things they'd done. It was only as if one didn't look at it as justice. Someone needed to stand up for the victims.
"Don't worry." Leticia said. "I'm not looking for any jail time."
Sheila laughed. It would be a futile attempt on anyone's part.
"There isn't a jail that could hold us." Sheila said.
If they couldn't get out from the inside, others would be able to do so from the outside.
"Even if there was, we have friends who will come for us." Hanna said.
Leticia understood. She wanted to make sure.
"More rob… - cyborgs?" Leticia asked.
Ally wanted her to know it was even more involved.
"Yes." Ally said. "There are plenty of human ones too who will come for us. They would probably be the first ones. They watch over us, as much as we watch over them."
Leticia looked back at the mess. She looked at the Metal girls.
"I'd be one of them." Leticia said.
Dan and Frank arrived while the girls were at 'work'. They quietly dumped the other two gang members in a back bedroom of the house. Once the girls were clear, they tossed a few Thermite grenades in the rooms with the stiffs. CamNet would suppress all emergency response.
Justice was served. In this case, it was served well done.
The Terminator nodded. He led the female towards the room with the other detainees. He checked the drone images. The one car of four men was on its way back. The other car of four men was headed to another destination.
The female paused a few feet away from the door.
"Are you really going to let me go?" The girl asked. "Will the others be allowed to go as well? Do we really get to keep the money?"
The Terminator thought he'd made himself clear earlier. He went over everything quickly again. He didn't have a lot of time to delay.
"I want you to explain to the others they will be freed." The Terminator said. "My linguistic skills are limited. I took the money from the people here. I'm here to stop the others. There are four of them on the way back. All the other ones here are terminated."
When they reached the room with the other detainees, the female explained to them they were going to be released. She showed them the bag with the money in it. The people all seemed a little apprehensive. They weren't sure if it was for real or not. They were afraid if they took the money, they would be killed. They didn't know who the big man was.
The Terminator motioned for them to follow him. The female walked out behind him. The other ones hesitated in the room. They were still worried they were going to be killed.
The female showed them the keys for the vehicle. She told them it was for real. They reluctantly followed her.
The Terminator led them out to the rear. There was only one vehicle the same make as the keys the female held.
"You need to drive away from here and don't stop anywhere along the way." The Terminator said. "You should abandon this vehicle as soon as you can. If you want to drive to another state non-stop, you can do it. You still need to get rid of the vehicle. The people associated with it will eventually track it down."
The female went to the driver's side and opened the car. It wasn't locked. She climbed in and turned the key. It started. She motioned for the others to get in. Two of them got in. The others were a little reluctant. She held up the bag of money. They got in.
"Turn to the right when you leave." The Terminator said. "The men will come back from the left side. You need to hurry. Don't speed. If the police become involved, they will take the money. I don't know what will happen to you either. Organizations like this usually have people on the inside at all levels of law enforcement."
The female understood the warning. No one could be trusted. If they wanted to remain free, they needed to avoid everyone. She thanked the Terminator and backed away from the building. She drove out the open gate.
The drone tracking the car about to return made a wider sweep of the area. It showed the female followed the instructions.
The Terminator awaited the arrival of the four men. The other four men were still on their way to their target.
The first technician increased the power when the opening began to close. There was a blinding flash of light and an explosion noise. Both of the technicians were knocked down. The Terminator was knocked offline.
The opening reappeared, but it was of a ragged shape. It was no longer rectangular. Strange noises emanated from the inside of it.
The two technicians started to move around. One of them sat on his rear end. The other one was on his hands and knees. He attempted to stand but collapsed back down to the floor. He assumed a sitting position like the other technician. They both looked at the Terminator.
"Is he wasted?" The first technician asked.
The second technician looked at the Terminator.
"How would I know?" This second technician said. "You saw as much as I did."
The first technician prodded the Terminator with his foot.
"I think he'll reboot." The first technician said. "There's a hundred and twenty second reboot time."
The second technician looked a little worried.
"Maybe we only have a hundred and twenty seconds to get out of here." The second technician said. "He's probably going to blame us."
They looked at the irregular shaped 'opening in the wall', where there was no opening.
"Let's get this thing turned off." The first technician said.
The second technician went to disconnect it. He noticed the cable was unplugged.
"It's not even hooked up." The second technician said. "It's open on its own."
The first technician became even more worried.
"We need to find some way to close it." The first technician said. "We don't know what's on the other side. We don't know what will come out. Hook it back up."
The two technicians attempted to reconnect the emitters.
The first man was about to head towards another storage area when there was a loud electrical noise from the other end of the building. He figured he'd better go check it out.
He hurried to the front area. He saw the Terminator lying on the ground and the two technicians fooling with the electrical wires. What worried him more, was the irregular shaped opening in the wall. There was nothing but blackness behind it. He could actually see the opening was fluctuating.
"What have you clowns done?" The first man asked.
The two technicians looked a little worried.
"We didn't do anything." The first technician said.
The first man stopped to look at the Terminator. He grasped his chin and moved his head back and forth.
"Did he get shocked?" The first man asked.
The technicians weren't sure exactly what happened.
"There was an electrical discharge." The second technician said. "He should reboot in about another minute."
The first technician finished the connection to the emitters.
"I'm going to give it some more power to try to shut it down." The first technician said.
The first man thought more power sounded like a bad idea. He was afraid the portal would open more.
The female Fanatic made her move. She was almost to the truck driver when there was a bright flash and an explosion noise from the area by the door where they'd entered.
The truck driver turned around. He was a little surprised to see a female standing there with a knife in her hand. He'd never seen her before.
He went to reach for a gun. Before he could pull it, he felt a sharp pain in his back. It was followed by three more in quick succession. He staggered and fell to his knees. He rolled over onto his back and saw something he never thought he would see again. It was the Bitch from the warehouse at the end of the dirt road. She held a bloody knife in her hand. He didn't have long to think about it. The other female was over the top of him in an instant. His world went black.
The female Fanatic watched as Jill sprang out when the man turned around and confronted her. She was pleased to see how quickly Jill acted. The man was stabbed several times and fell to the floor. She moved over the top of him and jammed the knife into his neck. She did it several times and backed away as the blood began to flow out. He no longer moved.
Jill didn't feel any hesitation when she'd made her move. She tried to stab the man where Jackie told her to. She was sure she delivered a fatal blow. She was even more pleased to see Jackie finish him off. She'd made her point. The man recognized her before he died. The sound of the forklift stopped.
She looked up over the top of a workbench. She could see the other truck driver look around. She looked towards the front where the noise was. He looked over towards where they were at. There was still some smoke in the air.
"He's coming this way." Jill whispered.
The female Fanatic held her Beretta in her left hand. She held the bloody knife in her right hand. She took a quick look in the direction Jill indicated. The surviving truck driver would be there any second.
There was a blinding flash followed by a loud electrical noise. Lena and Tina could both 'feel' they'd been affected by the electrical discharge.
Both of them had been crouched down when the electrical discharge occurred. They were both on their hands and knees right now. They could move but everything was sluggish. They were aware other members of the team had encountered similar phenomena. It was under different circumstances. The unknown portals, were unknown. It was what made them dangerous.
Lena was able to move first. She checked on Tina. She was soon functional again as well. They looked over in the direction where the electrical blast came from. They could see the Terminator was down and the two technicians were on the floor. The portal looked very unstable. It now had an irregular shape. It seemed to fluctuate around its edges. The first man arrived a few seconds later when the technicians attempted to do something with some cables.
"I think we need to act now." Lena said. "We need to kill everyone and deactivate the Terminator."
Tina noticed the forklift was no longer running. She looked in the direction they'd last seen the female Fanatic and her accomplice.
"We need to watch our back." Tina said. "We know there are at least four others behind us."
Lena and Tina move towards the Terminator, the first man and the two technicians. They needed to stop whatever they were doing.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Temporal Mission:
Past Timeline:
November 25 1963
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Young Allison waited for a vehicle to pass. She made a right hand turn and followed it. They traveled along the western side of the reservoir. They went up and down a few shallow dips. They soon reached a stop sign.
She could see there was a paved road which went to the east. It was Roscoe Boulevard. There was a dirt road which continued in the direction they'd been headed. It was the continuation of Valley Circle Boulevard. There was also a dirt road which angled slightly off of the intersection to the west. She wasn't sure what road it was. It looked more like a trail.
Cameron looked at the dirt road off to the right. She didn't want to go there.
"Let's take Roscoe eastbound." Cameron said. "Valley Circle doesn't go through without interruptions. It's dirt for a long segment ahead of us. The area to our right is Dayton Canyon. We don't want to go there. The area is highly polluted with toxins from the rocket tests and radiation from the meltdown. It will plague the area for the next half century."
Young Allison thought it was a good idea to get moving. She made the left on Roscoe Boulevard and continued down the street. It was very narrow. Once they'd gone about a quarter of a mile, there were some orange orchards on the south side of the street. There were a lot of them. She thought about the pollution Cameron indicated.
"Exactly how many rocket tests did they have at the Santa Susana Rocketdyne facility?" Young Allison asked.
Cameron felt it was quite extensive.
"There was testing until 2006." Cameron said. "From the time the facility opened in 1947, there were approximately thirty thousand different types of tests. Not all of them were regulated to a rocket engine tests. Over the years, there were ten different nuclear reactors constructed, or rebuilt, and tested there. They were all very small. During the time period they existed, there was one meltdown, and three other incidents where radiation was released. None of the reactors had a containment structure around them. It was determined it was unnecessary since they were small and for testing. I don't think someone thought it through. The area is still highly irradiated to this day, even after years of cleanup. The best estimates, from what was actually disclosed, were the amount of radiation released during the 1959 meltdown, was over four hundred and fifty times worse than the Three Mile Island incident a couple of decades later."
Young Allison was a little surprised to hear it. Maybe they didn't want to do too much hiking around the hills in the area of the test facility.
"Did anyone die?" Young Allison asked.
Cameron was aware there were no fatalities reported from any of the four incidents.
"There's been a high level of reported cancer cases from workers at the facility, as well as people living along Dayton Canyon and its runoff area.
Young Allison looked back. Dayton Canyon was behind them.
"There aren't too many houses." Young Allison said.
Cameron frowned.
"There isn't, but there will be." Cameron said. "They're still building them in your time period. Most of them start over a million dollars each."
Young Allison wondered about what happened.
"Was it just negligence, or was Skynet involved in some way?" Young Allison asked. "I know you said Cammy and Sheila fixed it, and then needed to go back un fix it.
Cameron previously looked into everything.
"It was a poor design." Cameron said. "The cooling tubes were too small and several of them became blocked. It was only a partial meltdown before it could be shut off."
On their left, Young Allison could see the Ramo Wooldridge industrial complex on top of the small hill. It was in front of the south side of the reservoir. She couldn't see the reservoir from their current location. She did spot something else on her right side, the south side of the street. It was a fire station.
"The fire station looks brand new." Young Allison said.
Cameron looked over as they drove by. There was a little placard on the front wall of it.
"It was built last year." Cameron said. "It opened in 1962. I'm sure it was placed here to protect the Ramo Wooldridge facility, as well as to be able to respond to an incident at the Rocketdyne test facility. Ramo Wooldridge would become the 'RW' in TRW. They are the initials for Thompson Ramo Wooldridge."
Young Allison slowed for a large dip in the street.
"Oh my, that's a big one." Young Allison said.
Cameron felt the issue needed to be addressed by the city.
"You would think they would take care of it." Cameron said. "It's just as bad sixty years from now."
Young Allison made a right on Fallbrook Avenue. They headed south. There were scattered housing developments on both sides of the street as they drove. There were also intermittent orchards. Most of them no longer were irrigated. Many of the trees were either dead or dying. A few of them still received irrigation. The land was more valuable to sell to developers than it could producing citrus fruit. As they neared Saticoy Avenue, she was a little surprised to see another dairy on the southeast corner.
"There's a name you don't see everyday." Young Allison said. "I'm not even sure how to pronounce it."
Cameron looked at the name on the drive thru dairy. It was an unusual spelling. It said, 'Giacopuzzi'.
"I believe the best way for you to interpret it would be as, Jack-a-poo-z '. Cameron said.
Young Allison giggled.
Cameron frowned slightly.
"I said, 'poo-z'." Cameron said.
Young Allison suppressed another giggle.
"I didn't say anything." Young Allison said. "Where are all the cows at?"
Cameron checked her files.
"They're located a few miles away on Vanowen Street. There's a five hundred acre dairy farm located very near the other Rocketdyne facility where the rocket engines are designed and constructed." Cameron said. "It's on Canoga Avenue. We can drive by there when we're done shopping at Fallbrook Square."
Young Allison looked at the gas station across the street from The Giacopuzzi drive thru dairy as they passed by it.
She continued south on Fallbrook Avenue past Sherman Way and then Vanowen Street. There were more houses in the area as they neared the shopping center. She could see Fallbrook Square occupying a large area of land. The building which caught her eye was a big JC Penney building located on the north side. There were a string of other buildings between it and the Sears at the end of the group of buildings to the south.
Young Allison had been to this area in more modern times. The big buildings were all still there. They were all under different ownership. Others had been added. The one thing which was noticeably different, was the parking lot area. It was now full of other buildings which were added later on. Most of them were restaurants.
She spotted something at the end of the street near the corner.
"I know where we're going first." Young Allison said. "It's your favorite."
Cameron could see the sign on the southeast corner of the Fallbrook Square parking lot.
Double Ended
Sometimes the best combination of something
Is when more than one thing is blended
The results could be quite different
They could also be quite splendid
Not everything that actually happens
Is what may have been intended
It can take time to play out
It may not be truly comprehended
Things often seem simpler
When one is isolated and secluded
There might not be a real difference
When one is confused and deluded
Often times the payoff
Is not worth the effort expended
The herd or flock will stray
When they're not properly attended
Things can escalate out of control
When a sword is extended
Try to keep in mind
The blade can be double ended
Nobody