Chapter 1535
Spare Arm
The four Grays left from the rescue party needed to proceed with extreme caution. They'd lost a couple of men down shafts where the rotted wood covering them collapsed under their feet. The earlier cave-ins took out the rest. They headed for Level Three. There was no going back the way they'd come from because of the cave-ins. The sloped shaft up to Level One was also caved-in. It was a dead end. It seemed everything was a dead end.
"All we know is we're following four sets of boot tracks." The third Gray said. "Most of those are all but obliterated at this point because of the debris which continues to fall from the top and sides of the passageway."
The second Gray was worried about all of the men killed in his group since they'd started the rescue operation.
"Not to mention we've already lost over half of our rescue force." The second Gray said.
No one wanted to take the 'blame' for the decision to leave the stuck elevator. It seemed more like a 'group decision' at the time.
The four Grays finally reached the sloped shaft which went down to Level Three. It was filled with a lot of rock. One of the men shined his powerful flashlight down it.
"I think we can get over the top of the rubble." The other Gray said.
The second and third Gray looked at each other. It seemed risky to them. They decided to send the 'new guys'. There weren't many other options left either.
"You and Kowalski can give it a shot, Nelson." The second Gray said. "Be careful."
Nelson and Kowalski started over the debris. They took a shovel and a large pry bar with them. They made it past the halfway point. Kowalski waited there while Nelson went down further. There was a small cave-in between them but it didn't block the path. The narrow passage through the sloped shaft was filled with choking dust right now.
The second and third Gray watched what they could.
The third Gray was a little wary of the additional cave-in on the sloped shaft. There might be some other options open to them.
"I think there was an air shaft back a little way." The third Gray said.
The second Gray wasn't sure it was a good idea either. They didn't seem to have too many options though.
"We lost a few men in those unknown shafts." The second Gray said. "We don't know where any of them go."
The third Gray thought about their destination.
"They go down." The third Gray said. "We want to go down as well. We can't go back the way we came from. The way forward doesn't look very promising either."
There was a rumble from the sloped shaft. They could hear two different screams. Dust billowed out of the sloped shaft. It was completely blocked at this point.
"I don't think it ended well." The second Gray said.
Things seemed self evident to the third Gray.
"It sounded to me like Kowalski and Nelson bought it." The third Gray said. "We're out of options."
The two Grays carried a hundred feet of thin nylon rope between them.
They headed back to the last downward shaft they'd passed earlier.
"This is some rescue operation." The second Gray said.
"Yeah, we're the ones who need to be rescued." The third Gray said.
They secured the rope and started down hand over hand through the narrow air shaft.
"We're all gonna die." The third Gray said.
The second Gray didn't need to be reminded of the peril they were in.
"Shut up, Billy." The second Gray said. "Now you sound like Hudson."
Hudson was on top of the elevator between Level Three and Level Four. He'd tossed the two headless bodies over the side to try and determine how far down he needed to go. He tied the rope he took from the dead man to the main cable support on the top of the elevator.
Much to his surprise, the elevator started to go down very slowly. He decided to go back inside of it. He didn't pay attention and placed his foot in a pool of blood on the one side of the hatch. It was thick and slick. He slipped and started to slide off the top of the elevator. He made a desperate grab for anything to hang onto. He lost his phone. It was his only light.
"That's just great." Hudson said. "Absolutely beautiful…."
One of his hands found the rope in the darkness but his feet were already over the side. He didn't know which side of the elevator he was on at this point. He only knew there was more room on the side with the door. He wrapped the rope around his wrist so it wouldn't slip from his grip. More of his body went over the side as he tried to pull himself up.
Panic set in as he went over the side. The rope bit deep into his flesh but he didn't fall. The wind was knocked out of him a second later as his body contacted a slightly protruding rock on the side of the Main Shaft. He didn't think anything was broken. He tried to pull himself up again. The impact did knock him closer to the corner. He wanted to get to a different side. He might be able to do so. The only trouble was, he didn't know which side it was. There could be more or less room. He was in total darkness. His body impacted with another protruding rock. He heard his clothing rip and felt a sharp stab of pain. He went around the corner. As the pain in his shoulder increased, his world went black.
John Henry needed to worry about the two helicopters headed for the mine location. He also needed to see if he could backtrack where they came from. It would certainly be another target. The helicopters were low to the ground and were only spotted by the drone furthest out on patrol. They weren't on any radar.
Summer monitored the feed from Toto when it went blank. She checked and everything was blank from inside the mine.
"We've lost them." John Henry said.
Summer feared an underground explosion.
"Were there any ground vibrations or tremors detected?" Summer asked.
John Henry monitored a few different seismometers. There was no indication of it. He checked with Al's team at the mine head. They didn't notice anything different.
"No." John Henry said. "The team on the ground didn't feel or hear anything either."
They needed to get the team out. The clock was running down.
Summer wanted to help the team on Level Four.
"It looks like there are only a handful of Grays left." Summer said. "I think you should send the elevator all the way down to level Four. The Grays should go over to look at it to see about additional assistance, or for them to leave. It should concentrate them further into one area."
John Henry liked the idea. He decided to give it a slow descent. If the Grays heard it, they would be distracted while they waited for it to arrive. It should draw all of them over. He was sure if one of them heard it, they would alert the others and call them over.
"It's a good idea." John Henry said.
Summer looked at the drone images as the drone on patrol closed up on the two helicopters. There was no offensive armament spotted on them. They were slicks.
"I think the plan from the Young bunker is the way to go." Summer said. "Let the helicopters land. They can be destroyed there or at least disabled. They shouldn't expect the mine to be in hostile hands, even if they can't communicate with it."
John Henry hoped it was true. He moved a second drone in behind the first at a higher altitude. Both of the helicopters were 'locked up'. He continued to search the surrounding area.
Jim and Cam lost communications with the surface, but not with Bob and Gail. They didn't have contact with the surface either.
"Look, all the Grays have gone over to the Main Shaft." Jim said.
"The elevator must be on its way down." Cam said. "John Henry knows where we were when we lost communication. He knows we need to get out soon."
Bob was about to enter the area where the four Grays were at when he'd lost surface communications. The rest of the team was still connected with each other.
"The four targets are all concentrated in front of the elevator doors." Bob said. "I have a clear shot."
Cam was worried about any other Grays they couldn't see yet. Toto checked around the area but hadn't located anyone else additional.
Gail sat back a few hundred yards on the electric tram. She'd stopped so the Grays didn't come to see why the tram which left a short time ago was already on its way back. They might think there were injured survivors in it. Sitting around waiting didn't appeal to her. There was a scream off to her left side and an impact noise. She hopped off of the tram and readied her weapons. It was clear there were more of the enemy around them which they didn't know about earlier.
"I have contact." Gail said. "There's at least one Gray. He may be injured."
Cam didn't want to hear it. There were Grays in front of them and in back of them now. It sounded like bad news. They needed to get out.
"We don't want to get caught in a crossfire." Cam said.
Jim thought about what Gail reported. It was the sector he'd checked.
"Gail, there were some ventilation shafts near where you're parked." Jim said. "Someone may have tried to use one to either escape or reach this level. There could have been a Gray hiding somewhere to avoid a work detail."
Cam thought it was worse than a slacker.
"It could be the rescue party which was sent down too." Cam said.
They all knew it was a dozen men. It would be trouble.
Gail was already on foot. She was almost to the location where she'd heard the noise. Her silenced M9 searched for a target. Her Taser was in her other hand. She didn't know the nature of the threat.
She spotted a body lying on the ground. The Gray looked hurt. He was still moving and groaning now. She looked around the area for anyone else. She moved up to him and snapped his neck. She moved him off to the side. Some debris fell out of the ventilation shaft. There was at least one more person inside.
She put her M9 and Taser away. She brought her suppressed M4 up in front of her. She flipped the selector from 'Safe' to 'Auto'. She would fire the entire magazine upward into the shaft in a figure eight pattern. There should be Coltan projectiles every few inches apart as they searched for targets in the narrow shaft. She pulled the trigger and fired the pattern. She moved back from the opening and pulled out a Thermite grenade. She started to rig it as a booby trap from the only way out from the spot.
Cam, Jim and Bob all heard Gail say what she was about to do and then the suppressed rounds from her M4.
In the next monument, there was a metallic clang and one of the Grays opened the outer door for the elevator.
Cam was afraid they were about to face more Grays from inside the elevator. It was time to act
"Take them down." Cam said.
Both Bob and her opened fire.
Jim already went back to assist Gail in case they encountered a larger force of Grays behind them. Whatever it was, it seemed like trouble.
Moments ago:
The two Grays were in the air shaft. They'd planned to get out of it at Level Three. One Gray still hoped to 'visit' the female hostage. She was held on Level Three. Everyone said she was tight. It was good, because he was really small.
"I think we're almost there." The second Gray said.
Some debris fell from above them. The third Gray was hit in the head and slipped on the rope. He slammed into the second Gray below him. The second Gray lost his grip and fell past Level Three on down to Level Four. He was busted up badly. The only thing that slowed his descent was when his body would twist and slow down from friction against the sides of the narrow shaft. Much of his skin was abraded off.
The third Gray turned on his light when he recovered somewhat. He didn't see the second Gray. All he'd heard was the scream which faded away.
He made it down to Level Three and looked down into the shaft.
He saw a flickering light at the bottom move in a figure eight pattern. Maybe it was from a lighter.
"Thank goodness." The first Gray said to himself. "He's just singled me he's OK."
A fraction of a second later six bullets slammed into his face and neck as he leaned down into the shaft to look. His body slipped into the air shaft and fell silently. He was also heavily abraded from the friction when he landed.
Seconds ago:
The four Grays at the Main Shaft went to open the outer doors for the elevator.
They all took a step back once the outer doors opened. There was a severed arm hanging in front of the elevator door suspended by a rope wrapped around its wrist. The four of them silently fell before their brains could process what they'd actually looked at. Bob and Cam found their targets.
Gail almost had the Thermite grenade booby trap in place. When there was another 'thud' impact. She knew whoever was in the air shaft would have been hit. She'd expected to see more bodies.
"Scratch four." Cam said through their coms. "The elevator is empty, almost."
Jim covered the area around Gail in case someone already slipped out.
"Let's go." Jim said.
Gail wanted to wait a few seconds longer.
"Take the tram and go." Gail said. "I'll catch up."
Jim handed her another Thermite grenade and ran to the tram. He took off in it. The three deactivated Terminators were in the back.
Gail rigged a second Thermite grenade as a booby trap. She figured anyone else about to come down would rethink their choice. She headed for the main passageway and ran after the tram tractor and one ore car Jim drove. She caught up to it and climbed into the car with the three deactivated Terminators.
Seconds ago:
Bob and Cam closed in on the fallen targets. The four Gray were dead. They'd both scored head shots on all four.
"These Grays could all use a new head." Cam said.
They saw the severed arm hanging in front of the elevator door.
"There's a spare arm." Bob said as he yanked it down and tossed it off to the side.
Cam and Bob both switched to their M4. There were most likely more Grays inside the elevator.
Bob opened the inner elevator door with Cam at his side. Both of them searched for targets. The elevator was empty. Well, except for two severed heads in bad condition.
"Scratch four." Cam said. "The elevator is empty, almost."
They could hear the tram approaching their location at high speed a few seconds later.
Toto entered the elevator and pushed both severed heads out.
As soon as Toto was inside the elevator, communications were restored to the surface. There was still a drone over the top of the Main Shaft for a communications link. The repeater they'd rigged on Toto earlier completed the link.
Jim arrived thirty seconds later. Gail was in the car behind the tractor. She handed Bob one deactivated Terminator. She handed Jim another one. She hopped out and carried the female Terminator.
They headed for the elevator. Toto was outside with Cam. She still covered the area with her M4. Once everyone was inside, she made sure Toto was in and closed the outer door and then the inner door.
"We're in." Cam said. "Bring us up."
There was a big jolt and the elevator rapidly began to ascend.
John Henry filled them in on some potential surface activity with the arrival of the two unknown helicopters.
Al was at the Mine Head. He activated the lift controls to bring the elevator up. He'd disconnected the winch governor to increase the ascent speed. The electric motor ran at a high RPM. It began to build up heat. They were eleven minutes away until detonation.
He could hear the two helicopters approach from the south. There was plenty of room for both of them to land at the same time.
Ed, Ken and Lou all took up defensive positions.
There were four drones to back them up plus two which shadowed the two helicopters. There were other drones out on patrol.
Young Allison and Anna were glad the team was on its way up. They watched the helicopters approach.
The two helicopters spread out.
"They're taking an offensive poster." Anna said.
Young Allison was worried they might use such a tactic.
"There's probably a recognition signal in place if they don't have communications." Young Allison said. "Did any of the Grays carry a colored smoke grenade?"
Anna quickly checked.
The team on the ground reported back negative.
They watched as the side doors on the helicopters were slid open. An M60 appeared on the side of one helicopter and an M249 was on the side of the other one.
"They're armed now." Anna said.
Samantha and Young Jesse knew the two enemy helicopters were on the way. There were four miles out now and at five thousand feet. They'd moved back a little further.
Young Jesse thought about what their response would be if the situation arose. It arose.
"I figured it was going to happen." Young Jesse said. "Let me take it. Arm us."
Samantha knew there were weapons in the helicopter. She glanced over at Young Jesse.
"You got it?" Samantha asked.
Young Jesse nodded.
"I got it." Young Jesse said.
Samantha climbed over the seat into the back.
Young Jesse heard the side doors open one after another. She glanced back and Samantha rigged a M60 in each door.
"You have friendly company." John Henry said. "A drone will stay off your port side and make every maneuver with you. It will give you forward firing offensive armament. You call the shots. It will also act defensively if it needs to."
"Hot damn!" Young Jesse said. "I'm in a gunship, almost. Now all I need is God as my copilot."
A female voice spoke in her com only.
"You have the next best thing. I'm your copilot." CamNet said. "You're covered in every direction on all six sides."
Samantha stood ready to man the 'pig' on either side as needed.
Young Jesse headed back towards the mine head. It was time to play hardball.
Cammy hurried John towards Fisherman's Wharf. She wanted him away from the trouble brewing behind them. Leticia was by his side. Ally moved Mary and Laura up together with her and Hanna fell back a little. She motioned for Steve and Tom to drop back and assist Sheila and Camille.
Mary looked around. She sensed a change in the atmosphere of the 'special girls'.
"Is something happening?" Mary whispered to Ally.
Ally glanced back.
"Yes." Ally whispered. "We picked up a tail. It's probably an Oakland street gang. I guess they vacation too, or find the tourists richer on this side of the Bay Bridge. Maybe they figure people in San Francisco are less likely to shoot back at them."
Laura saw Mary's concern. She heard what Ally said. She looked with all seriousness at the 'special girls' with them.
"Do you need our help?" Laura asked. "We haven't killed anyone in just over an hour."
Mary thought it was almost funny. The sad part about it was, it was true.
Hanna didn't want them to slow down. It was what they'd done.
"They have it covered." Hanna said. "Stay with Tony."
Mary was ready to join the fight.
"Are you sure?" Mary asked.
Hanna wanted to give the girls some reassurance. CamNet contacted her with specific instructions.
"Look up at the moon in four seconds." Hanna said.
Mary and Laura both looked up. They saw something pass in front of the moon for a second. It was one of the drones. They weren't sure what it was. They could only speculate.
"I saw it." Mary said. "It was some kind of flying saucer thing."
Hanna wanted the girls to know they were protected. They were ready to fight a small army if it was required.
"There are several of those around us right now." Hanna said. "They can level a whole city block in a few seconds if they need to."
Laura understood where the earlier images they viewed came from. It all made sense now.
"I like the way you roll." Laura said.
Mary thought about what they'd just viewed and what Hanna said. It was clear any of the gang members could have been killed by one of the flying machines earlier. They weren't. The 'special girls' wanted it to be personal. No, Sheila wanted it to be personal. She still remembered the look of glee on Sheila's face as she 'worked' on the gang members.
John sensed the tension in the air. He started to slow. Leticia took his arm and pulled him close. She hurried him along.
"Keep going." Leticia said. "We only have one block to go. I need to use the powder room."
Leticia kept John from looking back.
Cammy noticed everything the three girls did. They were all assisting them right now. Leticia smiled at her. She brushed her hair back for a second and she saw there was a com in her ear. Sheila must have given it to her….
Sheila and Camille slowed. John and the girls moved away from them. There were four men behind them. The men closed up on them.
"I'm telling you, bro, that's the chick who shoved Leroy and Jamal off of the cable car." The first punk said.
"OK, Tyrone, I'll believe you." The second punk said. "They're busted up pretty bad."
"What are we going to do with them?" The third punk asked. "Can we 'do' them? They're both hot. I want the Asian slut."
"Easy, Trevon…. We'll jump them. We'll all 'do' both of them." The second punk said. "We'll bust up the pretty one and we'll take the other one with us. She can be Trevon's plaything for a few days. We'll get her strung out and put her to work on the east side."
The four punks laughed.
"Anything goes in Oakland." The third punk said.
The four punks laughed again.
They watched as the two girls cut across the street and went into a parking lot. They would grab the girls there and teach them a lesson about who to fool with. Even if they weren't involved with the earlier incident, it didn't matter. Someone needed to 'pay' for it. It might just as well be them. They would be able to get satisfaction out of the situation in more ways than one.
Steve and Tom saw John and the girls were clear. They watched Camille and Sheila lead the four punks into a parking lot. They fell in behind them.
Dan and Frank were each in an SUV on either side of the parking lot. The punks were cornered.
Steve didn't like what he'd heard the punks say they wanted to do to Sheila and Camille. He figured the punks were going to like what happened to them a lot less.
Holly and Vanna finished up. Holly went into Precious' room after she put her robe on and went into standby.
Vanna grabbed her robe and headed for her room.
She listened outside the door for a few seconds before she peeked it.
Sarah and Allison were sharing hungrily with each other. She wanted to join in, but just watching them was hot. There was no jealousy on her part. She was more than willing to 'share' Allison if it brought Sarah closer to them and added her to the mix going forward.
Vanna slipped her hand inside her robe and touched herself as she watched Allison and Sarah share. She made it every time one of them did.
Life was good in Paradise.
The Terminator checked the position of the four men as they approached the other building. They would be there very soon. He was directed to the bar where the man who'd just been hit with 'metal hail' lay on the ground.
He monitored everything through the drones over the targets.
There were two men on each side of the building with the heat signatures in it. There were also heat signatures in the building across the street from it. It appeared the four men were unaware it was there.
CamNet wanted the assailants to terminate as many of each other as possible. It appeared as if the four men who approached the building would be cut down in a crossfire in a matter of seconds.
Someone in the building across the street must have spotted one of the groups of men approaching. Gunfire broke out.
One of the men who'd approached from the east side fell. The one next to him returned fire. The two men approaching from the other direction also directed fire at the building across the street. It was doubtful any of the men on the street actually had a target.
The two groups of men began to retreat. The second man on the east side was hit and fell as well. It still left the two men on the west side. It appeared one of them was wounded. They hurried back in the direction of their vehicle.
Several men emerged from the side of the target building as did a couple from across the street. The ones from across the street went to check on the two men on the east side. They'd been their targets. The three men who came out of the side of the target building pursued the two fleeing men on the street. The man who was wounded couldn't keep up with the other one. He was soon engaged in another gun battle with the three men from the target building. He managed to shoot two of them before he was down.
The remaining man made it back to the vehicle. He was able to get inside of it. There was still one man in pursuit of him. He fired wildly at the car as it backed away from the area. He suddenly fell as the man who'd been wounded earlier was still able to get one last shot off before he died.
More men exited from the target building as well as the one across the street. The drone over the area fired several bursts of 'metal hail'. Eight more men went down.
CamNet chose not to fire into the buildings with either a missile or more 'metal hail'. She sent the drone along with the man who was able to flee the area. The buildings wouldn't be going anywhere. Right now there were several individuals who checked on the dead. A drone would make a sweep over them as part of its recon.
She also observed someone exit from the rear of the bar and check on the man next to the vehicle. He evidently called for assistance as two other men came out. They carried the terminated man inside. She redirected the Terminator to pursue the vehicle which fled his previous location.
With traffic management, the Terminator was able to close up on the vehicle he pursued. There was a drone with it so he didn't need to take it under visual observation himself. It appeared the vehicle from the failed attack was headed towards the same direction as the one he currently pursued.
The Terminator was sure he was about to find a new target when both vehicles arrived.
The female Fanatic was sure everything around them was about to turn into a graveyard. She peeked around a couple of crates and could see the two men pass by. It sounded from their conversation, they didn't have a clue what they were about to walk into.
The two HK Tracks went on patrol. They'd been programmed to terminate all targets, whether they were human or Terminator. They were only to respond to the transponder code the female Fanatic programmed into them. They were the transponders Jill and her carried.
Jill wondered which direction they would go.
"Are we going to go back to the front?" Jill asked.
The female Fanatic wanted to find out what else was in the building. She thought her best course of action would be to follow the HK Track headed towards the interior. It should engage any targets in front of them.
"One of the HK Tracks is headed there now." The female Fanatic said. "We can follow the other one or we can get up on top of the catwalk. There's a ladder over there. I don't know how exposed we'll be if we use it."
There was another bright flash of light and a loud explosion from the front of the building. All of the lights went out. They were in total darkness. Some emergency lighting came on a short time later. The minigun on the HK Track they chose to follow, just fired at a target. A short time later it fired again.
The female Fanatic saw this as their opportunity to get up onto the catwalk.
Moments ago:
Lena and Tina were glad neither one of them entered the spatial portal. They didn't know what happened to the Gray who did, or the other half of the technician who was already terminated.
They'd moved the deactivated Terminator back to the position they previously were at. They could keep an eye on the portal in case it reopened. They were also near the door if anyone else entered. They could exit by it as well, but it is doubtful they would until they were done with those inside.
Lena noticed the electrical control panel the technicians had been working with began to smoke. She didn't know if it had been shut off.
"It looks like there's going to be a problem over there." Lena said.
Tina could see sparks coming from the area now as well as the smoke.
"There's a lot of electricity running into those connections." Tina said. "I think we should fall back."
They could hear one HK Track coming closer. There was minigun fire from further inside the building.
There was a bright flash of light and an explosion noise by the electrical cabinet. The lights went out in the building. It looked like a power surge tripped a breaker. A few emergency lights came on. There was more minigun fire.
The drone overhead showed The men in the outposts around the perimeter look back in the direction of the building when they heard the minigun fire.
Lena and Tina knew their biggest threat was the HK Track on the move.
Evidently the security chief did get someone's attention. There was an HK Track headed directly towards the Central Station.
The security chief heard another loud explosion noise towards the front of the building. All of his monitors went dark. The room went dark as well. He looked out the door from the Central Station. There were only a few emergency lights on inside of the building. He could hear minigun fire somewhere close to him.
The security chief exited the Central Station and moved away from it. He heard another burst of minigun fire. He thought the best course of action was to try to get out of the building.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Temporal Mission:
Past Timeline:
November 25 1963
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Young Allison continued her drive north on Canoga Avenue. Saticoy Street was the next street they approached. They'd gone by several industries on the east side of the tracks which had a rail siding.
She spotted something up ahead which she'd only heard about. It was a giant movie screen. It was on the west side of Canoga Avenue.
"I see there's a drive-in theater." Young Allison said. "The screen sure looks big."
Young Allison slowed a little as she approached it.
Cameron didn't believe it was a very good format to view a movie. The picture quality usually wouldn't be very good. The sound was even worse.
"There used to be thousands of them across the country." Cameron said. "Depending upon how the theater charged admission, sometimes it was cheaper for a larger family to go to the drive-in theater instead of a walk-in theater. I don't think the view from the backseat would be very good for anyone."
Young Allison giggled. She was sure there was another motivating factor for some of the younger individuals.
"I think it would depend upon what anyone was doing in the back seat." Young Allison said. "There would be a little more privacy for a couples who wanted to do a little more than watch the movie in the privacy of their own vehicle, as opposed to sitting in a row of seats with people in front of and in back of them, as well as on each side."
Cameron tilted her head slightly. She understood there could be a lot of 'touching' which no one could see.
"It would give two individuals a good excuse to go out together." Cameron said. "Not everyone would be able to afford more intimate accommodations."
Young Allison giggled.
"I'm sure there was plenty of hanky panky." Young Allison said.
Young Allison looked at the back of the giant screen as they passed it. It said 'Canoga Park' in giant letters across the top, with 'Drive In Theater' below it on the right side. There appeared to be some type of large missile or rocket on it, and two jets down at the bottom.
"The missile appears to be a cross between a Nike Ajax missile and a Nike Hercules missile." Young Allison said. "Maybe those jets are supposed to be some type of stylized F-106."
Cameron thought it was just artwork by someone commissioned to paint the giant backside of the movie screen.
"It seems to fit in well with the Aerospace industry located throughout the area." Cameron said. "I'm sure there were more than a few movies interrupted when there was a rocket test at the Santa Susana Rocketdyne facility. It would be behind them off to their left slightly. The screen is angled at a forty degree angle."
Young Allison thought about all the recent hysteria about a bad strain of the 'flu'.
"I'm sure the movie industry would have wished they still had drive-ins so they could show their movies when the city officials panicked and shut everything down." Young Allison said. "The hysteria did nothing to stop it. It ran its course, just like every other new virus does."
Cameron tilted her head slightly. She realized the areas with the most hysteria, were generally also the areas with the highest crime rate and drug use rate.
"The panic was mainly in a few of the states and selected cities." Cameron said. "Many other states returned to business as usual within a few weeks. The only individuals affected by the Asian Flu were those with pre-existing conditions. It was very much like some of the viruses Skynet released in the future to eradicate humans. All of those with pre-existing conditions of even minor diseases or ailments, were terminated. It actually left the strongest humans alive. It had the opposite effect Skynet wanted. There was more food and resources for the able bodied survivors who rose up against it."
Young Allison was aware Sheila and Cameron visited the lab in Asia where the virus originated. They'd terminated everyone inside. They wanted to make sure it wasn't a Skynet related project. They also wanted to make sure the data used to create the virus in the lab was destroyed.
She could picture Sheila going through the lab ripping the protective suits off the workers while she was naked. Sheila didn't like to get blood on her clothes. Cameron dealt with the administrative area and destroyed all of the hard drives and other data. She did take some of the information with her. CamNet now possessed it.
"CamNet and John Henry need to keep a good watch out for any other countries attempting to create similar viruses." Young Allison said. "If any are detected in the works, I think action should be taken immediately."
Cameron already issued those protocols. There was still a high probability some would be developed in secret in some of the more rogue nations.
"Everyone is on top of it." Cameron said. "I'll lead a force of Terminators to destroy it. No humans will be allowed on the mission."
Young Allison thought it probably was a good mission for Terminators only. She spotted another sign up on the left as they neared Roscoe Boulevard. She also spotted a giant building on the east side of the railroad tracks.
"There's a bowling alley right up here." Young Allison said.
Cameron wasn't sure it was a good idea for her to go bowling. Every time she did, it usually resulted in some type of challenge which ended in an altercation. It seemed some of the humans didn't like losing at a game they thought they were 'good' at. She was perfect at it every time. She only used her 'natural ability'. Maybe it would be a place to visit.
"We can go there sometime if you want." Cameron said. "There are several bowling alleys around the area. There are also several indoor movie theaters. One is right down the street on Topanga. There's actually another one further south. There's one in Chatsworth as well. Later on the location of the bowling alley will become a post office. They'll rip down the old building and construct a new one."
Young Allison could see the sign for the big building on the right.
"The sign says 'White Front' on it." Young Allison said. "Is it the same one the worker at the Sports Center mentioned?"
Cameron was aware of a few changes in the future.
"Yes it is." Cameron said. "Make a right on Roscoe and we can check it out. Several decades from now, a Costlow will occupy this location in the same building. The front facade will look different. Eventually everything will be torn down and a giant used car dealership will set up shop here."
Young Allison noticed they were gas stations on two of the corners on the west side of Canoga Avenue as she made the turn. She crossed over the railroad tracks and turned right into the parking lot. She noticed right away the large crescent shaped facade over the door. 'White Front' was spelled out in giant letters across the curve of it.
"You don't normally see architecture like that." Young Allison said. "It's hard to miss."
Young Allison park away from the other vehicles in the parking lot.
Cameron looked to the north.
"I hear gunfire." Cameron said.
Young Allison looked in the direction where Cameron looked. She noticed two things right away. One of them was a Bear Pit restaurant. The other one was a large building. It looked old.
"We can go to the Bear Pit here." Young Allison said. "I can't hear the gunfire."
Cameron zoomed in on the large building. She saw a sign which indicated there was a shooting range in the basement.
"We can go there." Cameron said. "I want to go to the Bear Pit in Mission Hills as well. There are a few things I need to check out in the area. There's a shooting range in the building across the street. It may only be for small caliber weapons."
Young Alison didn't think it would be a problem.
"We were at a skeet shooting range earlier today." Young Allison said. "I'm sure we can come to some type of 'arrangement' with one of the workers. We do have several 'surplus' firearms which we can barter with, plus plenty of cash."
Cameron was sure they could come to some type of agreement.
"I'll look into it." Cameron said.
Young Allison and Cameron headed for the White Front store.
"What's the building over on the other side of the street next to White Front?" Young Allison asked.
Cameron looked over at the location
"It's their automotive center." Cameron said. "There was one under construction at the Sears store we visited earlier. The Penny's store will also have one when it opens.
Young Allison looked over at the location a little further.
"I think there's a giant Home Improvement store located in the same spot now." Young Allison said. "It's the orange one."
Cameron was aware of what was in various locations at different times. She mainly focused on what would be there in 1963. She did look at other things as well.
"There will be a McRonald's restaurant built in the front parking lot once the automotive center is removed. A strip mall will be built behind the McRonald's. It will contain a Social Security office at one point in time. The McRonald's will be torn down and moved down the street to the location in what is now the Zodys parking lot."
Young Allison was thrilled about seeing all of the things in the past she knew about from her own time period. There were a lot of things to explore. It was hard to believe they hadn't even been in the Valley for twenty four hours yet.
Spare Arm
When it's time to check out
Does anyone really 'buy the farm'
Sometimes the hole left
Is to large for anyone to darn
When some don't want to listen
The tactics may require a strong-arm
The end result will be
More than a little harm
A personal flogging can happen anywhere
It need not be while tied to a yardarm
The fact it even can happen
Is what should raise the alarm
When the heat is turned up
It's time to disarm
If things go too far
It may require the use of a firearm
Always have a smile ready
It's better to turn up the charm
Few will go as far as to offer
A spare leg or a spare arm
Nobody