Chapter 1553

Steep Ascent

It was Jesse's job to distract Mary, Laura and Leticia. She didn't have much trouble doing it. She took on all three of them at once. She aimed for a simultaneous finish for the three of them. She was able to deliver it. It was like the 'old days' all over again, but the 'fresh meat' was never this fresh or Hot looking.

Cammy, Camille, and Sheila carried the combat gear up the airstair and into the back of the 727. The large rear galley became the staging area. Wes and Ned used the tow motor to turn the jet around and it was soon ready for flight. There was plenty of fuel onboard for several thousand miles. They wouldn't need to do a tenth of it.

Ally was behind the wheel of the van as it sped towards the airport. The girls were all dressed at this point. Ally and Hanna were in full combat gear.

They passed Holly and Claire on their way back to the base.

Hanna pointed them out so Allison and Vanna wouldn't feel guilty about leaving Precious behind.

They arrived at Van Nuys and parked in front of the Resistance hangar. The 727 was already turned around and ready to go.

Allison and Vanna were concerned because the Metal girls were headed for combat. Ally and Hanna downplayed the entire situation.

The four of them hurried up the airstair. Hanna secured the rear door as the airstair retracted. Cammy already disconnected the 'Cooper Vane'. With the device disconnected, the airstair could be lowered in flight. It was installed after a hijacking and ransom was paid to 'D.B. Cooper'. Airlines wanted to make sure the same thing couldn't happen again. It was a technique the team used before. It was on a cargo version 727. The technique was actually initiated by the CIA and used over Southeast Asia to drop off operatives from 'commercial airliners'. A commercial airliner was allowed to operate in areas where military aircraft weren't. It was always suspected 'D.B. Cooper' was involved indirectly with the project.

They heard the engines start one at a time and soon the 727 started to taxi.

Allison and Vanna were both aware Young Jesse was in the middle of the operation with Cam, Gail and Samantha.

Cammy, Camille and Sheila all put on combat gear and checked their weapons as the jet taxied. The jet was about to turn onto One Six Right. Wes brought the engines up to full power and tested them. A small private jet landed. He moved the 727 onto the runway and waited for clearance to take off.

Sheila entered the Executive Suite and told Jesse and the girls to strap in on the sofa and padded chairs. They were all equipped with seat belts.

"It's going to be a step ascent." Sheila said.

The girls were all naked as they strapped in. They'd noticed Sheila's combat attire.

"Why are you dressed like that?" Mary asked.

Sheila looked back as the engines spooled up to speed.

"We pulled a mission." Sheila said and hurried forward. "We need to get moving."

The girls were all a little concerned.

"It's duty before booty…." Jesse said.

The girls all laughed a little. It was an uneasy laugh.

Allison and Vanna were strapped in with Cammy and Camille across from them. Ally and Hanna were next to them. Sheila joined them.

Allison looked around.

"This is a really nice plane." Allison said.

Vanna liked it too.

"It reminds me of the ship." Vanna said.

The engines kicked up a steady roar. The brakes were released and the 727 shot forward. The jet soon lifted off but continued to pick up speed as they only climbed slightly. As they neared the end of the runway, the 727 began a steep ascent. It was at full power and it was moving. It was light with less than a full fuel load and only nine passengers plus the crew. They were going to fly at maximum speed until they were fifteen miles out from the drop zone. They would drop down to five thousand feet and slow for the jump.

CamNet cleared the airspace for them. There wouldn't be another plane within twenty miles of them.

The flight was only about twenty five minutes from take off to the drop zone. The five Metal girls would be on the ground ready to fight a few minutes later.

The girls all asked Jesse a lot of questions, she didn't have many answers. Once the 'Fasten Seat Belt' sign went off they threw on robes and headed for the lounge area.

Mary looked and saw that 'Peggy' was there and there were two of her. 'Ann' was there also and there were two of her.

Jesse stood next to Sheila. Hanna stood next to Vanna. Ally stood next to Allison.

The girls all asked questions about a lot of things….

They soon found out 'Ann' was really Hanna, and the one with the nursing breasts was Vanna. 'Peggy' was Ally and her identical twin in every respect was Allison. Somehow Cammy and Camille were the same 'person' as Allison, but more refined somehow.

Allison left her natural beauty alone most of the time and didn't make herself look Tight. Ally picked up those same traits. She learned long ago in the future you tried to prevent males from noticing you. Bad things could happen when they did.

Leticia knew the girls in combat gear were all 'special girls' like Sheila. She deduced Allison and Vanna were human like Jesse. She was thrilled there was a 'special' version of the human girls. She wanted a version of herself the same way more than ever. The fact she could be with herself and see herself like everyone else did, only made her want a 'special' version of herself more.

Laura looked at the combat gear the Metal girls wore.

"So this is now a combat mission?" Laura asked.

Cammy checked the Metal girl's gear.

"For us it is." Cammy said.

Leticia was worried about Sheila and the other 'special girls'.

"Is it dangerous?" Leticia asked.

No one even needed to think about the response.

"Yes." The Metal girls all answered at the same time.

If it wasn't so serious, it would have been funny.

Cammy wanted them to know it was their adversaries who would face their wrath.

"It will be more dangerous for the enemy." Cammy said.

The girls from the ship saw the Metal girls in action before. They didn't doubt the assessment at all.

Cam and Samantha were inside the fourth building. They'd just terminated six Grays sent out to ambush them. A drone at low altitude picked the Grays up inside the building so they were ready for them. They knew exactly where they were about to come out.

The fourth building was sent up mostly as a barracks area. There were two dozen bunks. There was a separated bunk set up behind a partition constructed out of plywood. The bed was stained with blood spots and dried bodily fluids. There were blood splatters on the plywood wall. It was clear females died in the bed before. There were ropes at all four corners. All of them were stained with dried blood.

Cam didn't like how the Grays treated females. It was time for retribution.

"Everyone here dies." Cam said.

Samantha wondered how many females were abused there and died there over the time the Grays were there. She was onboard with the terminations.

"Affirmative…." Samantha said.

They checked for any underground access to building three. None was located. It meant they would need to cross the street again. They figured they took down half of the ambush team. There should be one waiting in building three. The drone scans picked up heat signatures in the other building as well. The Grays were clustered where they could watch the street.

Cam relayed all the information to the Command Center.

"You will have a diversion soon." John Henry said. "Michael and Richard should arrive in the assistant manager's car in one minute. I asked them to slow their arrival until you cleared the fourth building."

John Henry laid out the plan Summer and Young Allison set into motion.

Young Allison checked the location of the 727.

"I don't think the Metal girls are going to arrive soon enough." Young Allison said.

Anna didn't think so either.

"We can delay Cam's strike if we need to." Anna said. "They're extra anyway right now."

Young Allison didn't think there was anything 'extra' on a combat mission. There were a few things they could do to assist their team.

"We have drone scans of the entire area now." Young Allison said. "We can afford to wait a little bit longer. Maybe we should do a low altitude 'metal hail' mission into the third building first. It should eliminate most of the opposition."

Young Allison and Summer discussed the options. It didn't appear the enemy knew the extent of their losses with all the communications cut.

"There hasn't been any gunfire on the ground yet other than our teams." Young Allison said. "I don't think the opposition understands the true nature of the attack. They still think they have the upper hand."

It was decided to have Cam's team hold, along with Michael and Richard.

Gail and Young Jesse encountered an armored security door before they'd gone too much further.

"We can blow it open." Young Jesse said. "Hank and Larry have plenty of explosives."

Gail didn't want to advertise their transit if possible. It would only insure an armed 'welcoming committee' at some point. They would need to retreat some distance to be away from the blast as well.

"Let me work on the lock for a little bit first." Gail said.

The Command Center gave them the order to hold again. It worked well with Gail's plan.

"We're held up anyway." Young Jesse said.

John Henry informed them there was additional personal on the way. He wasn't specific as to whom. It was decided to have Gail take over the backpack nuke for now. Hank and Larry were to go back and make sure everything was clear in the other part of the tunnel which went in the opposite direction from the junction they'd passed earlier.

Gail strapped on the backpack nuke and continued to work the keypad.

Hank and Larry went back to make sure there was no one behind them. There hadn't been any explosions behind them so far. It was a good thing.

Young Jesse watched Gail work. She also looked at the nuclear weapon which was now with them. She knew Savannah and Young Allison, as well as Cameron, all used them before in underground complexes. She knew they were all willing to die to make sure the target was destroyed. She swallowed hard and let out her breath. She might have to do the same. So be it….

Holly drove back towards the Resistance base. Claire was very concerned with all the military gear she'd watched loaded on the plane.

"Where are they going?" Claire asked.

Holly told Claire what she knew.

It didn't do much to quell Claire's fears. She knew her daughter was on board now.

"Allison isn't going with them is she?" Claire asked.

It was Holly's concern as well.

"Allison, Jesse and Vanna will watch over Mary, Laura and Leticia." Holly said. "The Metal girls have this covered. They don't anticipate a major battle. It was determined to make sure the troops on the ground were covered. They were in a position to get to the target area faster this way with weapons and body armor."

Holly went on to explain about Richard and Michael as well as Hank and Larry.

"Do you mean they will be in a vault for years and they just left a short time ago?" Claire asked.

Holly was updated. She didn't want to get too specific and alarm Claire any more than necessary.

"It's already done and happened. They're already out and in full combat gear. They've already reinforced Gail's team." Holly said. "They'll have two of the Metal girls with them soon as well. The other three will reinforce Cam's team."

Claire was less frantic when they arrived at the Resistance base.

"I'm going to go to the Command Center." Claire said.

Holly knew it wasn't a good idea. Summer was there with John Henry. She wanted to prevent Claire from going to the Command Center at all.

"I hoped that you would go to the nursery and be there for Precious since Vanna and Jesse are out." Holly said. "Riley may need some assistance. I'll deal with the Command Center."

Claire wondered where John was at. She thought he was in the Command Center planning the whole operation.

"Tell John I said, 'Hello'." Claire said.

Holly knew there was more than one way to keep Claire out of the Command Center.

"John is in his room resting." Holly said. "I hoped to stop by later on and visit him. I haven't done so yet…."

Claire was aware Cameron already 'used' Holly's chassis on the ship. The more she thought about it, the more it bothered her. Cameron stripped all the Metal girls of their virginity as she controlled their chassis. It seemed very selfish. She was unconscious as her virginity was taken from her. She only awoke as the unknown male was about to finish. Then the second one started it. She was too groggy to resist much. They both left and she never saw them again. She could only see how happy they were about what they'd just done. They high fived each other as they went out the door. They both laughed because they'd noticed she was a virgin.

"That's the fifth virgin I've bagged the same way." The first male said. "I bet they're sore afterwards, especially with the two of us. The last slut was tight too."

"Not to mention about twenty others." The second male said. "The 'ludes' do it every time."

She heard them both laugh and then blacked out again. She was sore too for about three days. She really hoped her mother didn't find out about what happened. She needed to worry for a few weeks if she was pregnant or not. She wasn't.

Holly's words brought her back to now.

"You can visit John if you want instead." Holly said. "I might have a chance some other time."

Claire swallowed hard. She wanted to do it now. She'd been with John a few times. He'd delivered every time. Holly hadn't been able to be with John as herself yet. It was doubtful she would be able to once Cameron returned.

"No." Claire said. "I want you to have the experience at least once. You may not get the opportunity again anytime soon."

Holly smiled and kissed Claire.

"Thank you." Holly said. "I'm still very uneasy about it."

Claire knew John would take care of Holly.

"You've nothing to worry about." Claire said. "John is great in bed and he will treat you right and make you feel good. I promise. You can see me afterwards…."

Claire entered the nursery. She looked at Holly in the gap before the door closed.

"Have fun." Claire said as she winked at Holly. "It'll be great."

Claire hoped to get another 'turn' as well if she could.

Holly headed for the Command Center. She stopped and listened at John's room for a little bit. It sounded quiet. She started to walk away but went back and carefully opened the door.

She could hear John asleep in the bedroom. She thought about going to wake him or even strip and join him in bed. She frowned and left his room and headed for the Command Center.

John drifted in and out of sleep.

His eyes opened. He thought he heard his door open. He sat up and waited. There was nothing. He quickly checked both sides of the bed. He was alone right now. He briefly wondered if Cameron returned. She would try to sneak up on him to spy on him. He didn't know she'd actually watched Allison with him on the ship. It was the moment she'd decided she was going to be with Savannah. It was what she needed to make her commit.

He carefully got up and went and looked. There wasn't anyone there.

He opened the door and looked out in the hall. He didn't see anyone. He looked in the other direction towards the commissary and Command Center. He spotted Holly.

There was a hunger in him which was aroused intently to see her. He'd always liked her shapely body. He was very pleased as he stripped away its virginity with Cameron in control of her chassis. He'd actually thought Cameron would allow him to have Holly on the ship. It didn't happen.

He wanted to call out to her.

John Henry and Summer looked over the new targets in the third building. Everyone was on hold right now. It seemed the group in building three waited for the vehicle to approach before they acted. It wasn't going to happen right now.

Cam and Samantha weren't going to approach yet either.

If any Grays ventured out, they would be taken down with 'metal hail'. Any Grays who witnessed it would know the same fate would befall them. It would be silent death from above.

Holly was a little disappointed she didn't stay in John's room. She really wanted to be with him. The desire to do so was planted in her for the fifteen months she was his 'personal confidant' in Cameron's absence after the 'Day of Loss'.

She made herself 'available' to him every night. She'd even moved some of her things into his room. She would strip in front of him to use the shower or change clothes. She watched John's hungry eyes roam all over her naked sheath. She made sure he saw everything…. She could see his body respond to her. He tried to hide it but she saw the reaction her nakedness caused. He had every opportunity to take her. He never did.

Cameron, well, Duplicate Cameron's program was on her chip at the time. She offered once a day to allow Duplicate Cameron to take control as 'herself' to be with John in her chassis. Duplicate Cameron always declined and told her she wouldn't strip her of her purity. Cameron didn't seem to have any trouble to actually do it years later. Still, she hadn't experienced her first time with a male yet. She really wanted it to be now.

John watched Holly walk away. He wanted her luscious chassis in his bed. He'd wanted Holly for so long, especially when Cameron was 'gone' for fifteen months and Holly was always at his side. She made it clear she was there for the 'taking', but the choice needed to be his.

He wanted it bad at the time. He was afraid if he reached out and 'picked the forbidden fruit', he would never see Cameron again. It was only Savannah who made him believe Cameron would come back from the dead somehow. It was Savannah's faith alone which gave him the strength not to 'take' Holly back then. He should have. He wasn't about to make the same mistake again. It was time to act and make his desires known. He wanted to make sure he was able to share with her before Cameron returned. He didn't think it would happen afterwards.

"Holly!" John called out.

Holly would check on the operation from the Command Center since Claire was back at the base. She would see if they needed her at the combat site. She could be there in an instant at any point in time if John Henry sent her there with the TDE. She would arrive naked and weaponless, but it didn't matter. She was a weapon. Her nakedness would only distract the enemy.

"Holly!" John said.

Elation flooded her being. She quickly undid two buttons on her top and opened it up a lot. There was a lot of cleavage showing. She turned around and saw John by his room. Maybe he was on his way to the Command Center. She hoped not. She headed back in his direction. She exaggerated her walk. She wanted to silently make her desires known. she hoped it stimulated John and would prompt him into a little further action.

John questioned his call to Holly almost as soon as he'd made it. He didn't question it when she turned around. There was a lot of cleavage showing along with most of her breasts. He wondered if she'd just been with one of the girls. She should be in a high state of arousal if she was.

He started to walk towards her but stopped. He wanted to be by his room to see if she'd enter. Maybe she did earlier and it was what he'd heard. Why didn't she stay if it was the case?

Holly approached him with a faint smile on her face. It grew as she was almost to him. Her walk excited him more. He recollected what someone said once on the street to a pretty girl.

'Can I get a hamburger and fries with that shake?' John remembered.

"Hi, John." Holly said. "I didn't know you were up this late, or early I guess at this point."

John wasn't sure what time it was. He didn't really care. His eyes were transfixed on Holly's mostly exposed breasts. They were about to burst out of her top. He could clearly see her rings through the material. It was something new. He needed her now more than ever.

'Does it get any hotter than this?' John wondered.

Claire entered the nursery. She looked at Holly in the gap before the door closed.

"Have fun." Claire said as she winked at Holly. "It'll be great."

She went inside and closed the door. She saw the bed was in disarray. Whoever was in there must have left in a hurry. She would go check on Precious and then come back and make the bed. She would wait a little bit and see if Holly actually joined John or not. If Holly didn't, she was going to do it herself. She wondered what she would say to Cameron if she woke up naked next to John in their bed with Cameron standing over them. She smiled to herself and decided she would say, 'thank you'.

Claire listened at the door to Riley's quarters. It was quiet. She entered and went to Precious' room.

"There's my little angel". Claire said softly.

She touched her cheek and pulled her blanket up a little more.

She touched her belly and knew the baby in there was for Allison. She wanted to have her own again. She would ask Cameron if John could father another baby for her. She would promise the next one to Cameron. She could give Cameron what she really wanted and offer to carry one from Young Allison. She would rather do it than try and compete with Young Allison for John's bed. She knew it was only a matter of time anyway.

Earlier:

Riley returned to her room when everyone needed to leave in a hurry. It was kind of spooky. She'd checked on Precious on the way there and she was fine.

Derek couldn't wait to get his hands on Riley when she entered the room.

Things went wild from there.

The Terminator pulled himself up the ladder and made his way onto the roof. He carefully moved towards the first skylight. He looked in from the closest corner. He could see diagonally across the workroom area. He could see there were a few crates. He could also see something else which was of great concern to him. There was an HK Tread sitting on the interior dock in front of one of the boxcars. The boxcar door was open on the second boxcar. He could see there were at least two HK Tracks inside of it. Everything appeared to be inactive.

The drone above him moved to a higher elevation when he informed CamNet of what he'd discovered. He was advised to use extreme caution. CamNet wanted to appropriate the equipment if it was possible.

CamNet took control of the railroad system where the Terminator currently was at. There were remote control helper units which she could access their control frequency. There were several sets located in the helper district. The easiest accessible set consisted of three road locomotives. Each one produced four thousand three hundred horsepower. To move two box cars, she only needed a small switcher. There were none available she could access with remote control. The switches and signals were aligned for the helpers to move out of the siding they were on. They were soon on the mainline and headed in the direction of where the Terminator waited. It would take them some time to reach the location.

The Terminator carefully made his way around the other three skylights. So far, the only HK equipment spotted on the work room floor was the single HK Tread in front of the open box car door. It must have been moved out of the boxcar for a reason. He didn't believe it was for sentry duty.

He was unable to view any of the front office space of the building. He could only see the workroom floor through the four skylights. He made his way to the roof access hatch. It was secured. He didn't know if it was wired or not. Since the cover plate over the access ladder was locked and wired, he needed to assume it was wired as well.

The Terminator was now faced with a dilemma on how to enter the building. He needed to terminate any personnel inside, and get the two boxcars ready for transport. He carefully made his way across the roof back to the access ladder. He tried to stay along the perimeter of the building as he moved. He hoped it would make less noise. When he was near the air conditioning unit on the roof, he made his way over to it. He could access the duct system. It was going to make some noise. He would have tear some metal sections loose to do it. He checked the drone image above him. There was no movement in his area.

He reached the access ladder and went down it until his feet were one rung above the cover. He pushed off from the ladder and landed in front of it. He took a quick look around him. He made his way back towards the rail siding.

The Terminator paused at the corner of the building. He moved out onto the railroad tracks past the external loading dock. He went up to the two large double doors which opened inside the building. He reached underneath the door on his left side. He attempted to pull up on the cane bolt which went into the ground. It didn't budge. He could exert more force, but something would most likely snap. He moved over to the right side and attempted the same maneuver. There was some play in the other cane bolt. He was able to rotate it back and forth ninety degrees. He slowly moved it back in the original direction as he pushed up. He wanted to find the opening where it would lift. There was a soft 'click' and he lifted the cane bolt out of the ground so it was even with the bottom of the door. The door appeared to open outward. He gently pulled on the large door. There was a 'squeak' noise almost instantly. He paused.

He continuously looked through the small gap for any movement. He listened for any internal sounds. If anything was different, he might be compromised. So far nothing was detected.

The door moved approximately one foot before it wouldn't move anymore. There is evidently a second catch on it. There wasn't enough space for him to pass through without bending the door or forcing the second catch open. He reached his hand around to the cane bolt on the other door. There was a padlock through it. He grasped the padlock and twisted. There was a 'snap' noise when the metal fatigued and fractured.

He remained in the position he was in to see if there would be any type of response. None was detected. He proceeded to lift the cane bolt on the other side. He was able to move the door a foot as well before the secondary catch prevented it from opening further. He reached down and carefully pulled both doors open one foot each. He slipped inside of the opening. He returned both cane bolts to their previous position. He looked at the secondary catch. It was wired.

The Terminator was inside of the building. He would need to use the utmost caution to avoid activating any of the HK equipment. He also needed to find out who else was in the building.

The security chief believed the HK Track went towards the sound of the gun fire. He couldn't easily hold the RPG and his pistol. He decided to stick with the RPG.

There was an explosion at the front of the building. It was where the HK Track and spatial portal were at. It was followed a few seconds later with another explosion. He decided to take cover. He didn't know what was happening. He moved behind the crates. He could hear the other HK Track moving. It sounded as if it was moving away from the explosions. It meant it was coming back in his direction.

After the second explosion, there was a massive third explosion. He was sure it was the power cell of the HK Track by the spatial portal. It sounded very large whatever it was. The sound and concussive effect was very extreme. It knocked him flat on the ground from his crouched position. Debris landed on top of him. He quickly reached his hands up to cover his neck and head as he assumed a fetal position. Parts of the building landed around him, and on him.

He was unsure what instigated the attack. He didn't know if it was an external attack, or the result of the energy discharges from the spatial portal. He decided to remain where he was at temporarily. He was covered with various types of debris. He could move all of his limbs and didn't feel too much pain. His hands didn't find any slickness to his body as he touched it. He didn't think he was bleeding.

There was a lot of crunching and grinding noise. He could hear the tracks on the other HK Track slip as it attempted to climb over debris. The grinding noise it made was much louder than before. He could still hear what sounded like sparks coming out of it. If its power cell was compromised, like the other one was, he was too close to it to survive. There was a terrible ringing sound in his ears.

The security chief knew he needed to move away. He carefully began to uncover himself as soundlessly as possible.

The female Fanatic and Jill spotted the HK Track. There were sparks and smoke coming out of it. It was still able to move, even if there was a terrible grinding noise.

They both heard and felt the first explosion towards the front of the building.

"We need to get down now." The female Fanatic said. "Cover your ears and open your mouth."

Jill quickly did as she was instructed.

There was another explosion, and then a gigantic explosion. She was sure the other HK Track exploded. The entire building shook. Debris began to rain down on them from every direction.

They remained where they were at in case there was an additional explosion. So far there hadn't been.

The female Fanatic wondered what initiated the first explosion and then the second explosion which apparently destroyed one of the HK Tracks.

They could hear the other HK Track moving around. They currently couldn't see it. It seemed to be moving with great difficulty. There was a grinding metal sound as well as a sparking noise. It seemed as if it may be compromised too. Both of the females experienced some additional ringing in their ears. They'd prevented any additional damage by having them covered in time for the big blast.

There were only a couple of emergency lights left functioning. The building was in almost total darkness. It soon began to be lit as a fire from the front of the building started to grow. It must have been started by one of the explosions.

"What happened?" Jill whispered.

The female Fanatic could only speculate.

"It had something to do with the spatial portal and the other HK Track." The female Fanatic said. "I believe it's all been compromised."

The female Fanatic and Jill removed the debris from each other as quietly as possible. They knew there was still one Gray active, if he survived the explosion. They could clearly hear the damaged HK Track as it moved around.

Lena and Tina were directed to park the trucks off to the side and approach the building on foot. They'd watched the drone attack carried out earlier. It was a complete success. One of the HK Tracks, and possibly the Terminator they'd deactivated, ended up with a ruptured power cell. It destroyed a large section of the building. It now began to burn.

They needed to find out the status of the second HK Track as well as what the current status of the spatial portal was. So far as they approached the building, they didn't feel any negative energy effects.

The status of the female Fanatic and her accomplice was unknown. It appeared anyone who was near the front half of the building would have been terminated.

As they approached the compound on the road they'd driven the trucks out on. One of the drones picked up an image of the last remaining man at one of the four outposts headed in their direction. He currently ran without any visible weapon. It appeared he was just running at this point. He was running for his life.

They each moved to one side of the road. The man was almost to their position. Lena already moved ahead of Tina.

Tina stepped out onto the road in front of him. She was dimly lit by the burning building in back of the man. He could clearly see her. He stopped in his tracks. He turned to run. He found Lena standing behind him. Her figure was silhouetted by the burning building in back of her. He could tell both of the individuals were females. He was sure they were involved with the attack. They both wore combat gear and carried weapons.

Tina moved up behind the man as he stared at Lena. She grabbed him and searched him. He carried a pistol and a phone. She took everything.

Lena checked the drone images around them. The drones needed to remain at a higher altitude because the status of the other HK Track was unknown. The Skynet jamming field was down.

Tina began to question the man. He appeared to be an older individual. She needed to punch him and slap him around to get the answers she wanted. She'd already broken half a dozen bones without him revealing any worthwhile information. He grabbed his chest and terminated. He'd apparently suffered a heart attack. She carried his body forward and dumped it in the outpost which guarded the gate.

Lena and Tina were directed to find out the condition of the spatial portal first, before they investigated the remains of the building and looked for the second HK Track, as well as the female Fanatic and her accomplice. It was possible there were still Grays as well.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Temporal Mission:

Past Timeline:

November 25 1963

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Young Allison and Cameron continued down the side street and were soon on Devonshire Street. They made a right hand turn and went west.

Cameron looked around as they went down the street. It wasn't very late.

"Do you want to go anywhere else before we go back to the safe house?" Cameron asked.

Young Allison wasn't really sure. She would just as soon head for home. Then again, she wondered what other events would occur.

"Will there be another rocket engine test tonight?" Young Allison asked.

Cameron was unsure what the test schedule actually was. It was something she could have looked into before they'd left. It didn't seem important.

"I don't know." Cameron said. "We heard the man at the bowling alley say whenever they did a test, it brought the crazies out. I think we've witnessed it on several levels so far tonight."

Young Allison could make out the jagged saw tooth outline of the Simi Hills. They were very rugged and rustic looking. Even in the darkness, they looked ominous. Every now and then she caught a flash of light on the side of the hill below the Rocketdyne test facility.

"I can see headlights coming down the side of the hill." Young Allison said. "I'm unable to make out any tail lights going up."

Cameron looked in the direction of Woolsey Canyon Road on the side of the Simi Hills. She didn't spot any cars going up. They were all coming down. The testing was all done for the night.

"I don't believe there will be any further activity tonight." Cameron said.

Young Allison spotted something which caught her attention.

"What's that up ahead on the right side?" Young Allison asked.

Cameron redirected her attention from the hills in the distance, to what was closer to them on the right side. It was something rather unusual.

"It's a horse running wild." Cameron said. "It most likely escaped from one of the horse properties around here. There are scores of them in this time period."

Young Allison slowed as they neared it.

"I don't want it to run into the street." Young Allison said.

Cameron knew it would do serious damage to a vehicle. She didn't like to see machinery damaged unnecessarily. The horse would probably come out the loser. Once it was injured, it would need to be terminated. She pulled out her Hi-Power.

"Get closer." Cameron said. "I'll terminate it before it causes an incident and damages a vehicle."

Young Allison quickly looked over. She thought Cameron was joking at first. When she saw she held her P-35 in her hand, she realized Cameron was serious.

"I don't want you to kill it." Young Allison said. "I just want to stop it. It belongs to someone. There's no reason for it to be hurt, just because it's scared."

Cameron felt a slight glitch impulse. She knew what it was like to be 'scared'. She didn't know what the feeling was at first. It was when John chose Future Riley over her. She realized she was 'Not Good Enough'. It was a feeling which haunted her long after Future Riley's termination. She'd listened to the insults from John, Sarah and Future Derek for months on end. Every opportunity they got to take a jab at her, make a joke at her expense, or ridicule her for what she was, they did. She didn't create herself. She didn't have any say in the matter. If she had one wish, it would be never to have been built.

Young Allison glanced over at Cameron. She wasn't sure 'where' she was at right now. It wasn't in the passenger seat of the panel truck with a horse running down the street ahead of them.

"Cameron, forget about the past." Young Allison said. "This is where we are now. I want to stop the horse. I want to try to do it without hurting it."

Cameron blinked her eyes several times. She didn't like when past events crept up on her unexpectedly. It was like they just happened again when she thought about them. Everything associated with them felt just the same now as it did then. It left her with a very uneasy feeling.

"I can try to jump onto its back." Cameron said.

Cameron rolled down the window. In one swift motion, she put her Browning away, unhooked her safety belt and stood on the windowsill with her body outside of the panel truck.

Young Allison needed to refocus on her driving. She didn't see the need to try to talk Cameron out of it. She moved up close to the running horse. She was glad it didn't veer in front of her as the right front fender neared it.

In a flash Cameron was gone from the windowsill. She hit the brakes and fell back. She was glad there was no other traffic behind them. They'd only passed two cars going eastbound on the other side of the street. She could see Cameron was on the back of the horse. She was glad she no longer possessed her predator pheromones. All of the female Terminators now possessed pheromones which indicated to animals they were 'friendly'. Animals no longer saw them as a threat or feared them. Animals actually liked them.

Cameron thought she was close enough. She made the lunge and landed on the back of the horse. It was startled for a moment by her weight. The horse quickly sensed her pheromones. It begin to slow as she talk to it and stroked its neck.

Young Allison stopped fifty feet behind Cameron and the horse. Cameron was able to get the horse to stop very quickly. She looked for the emergency flashers to turn on. There weren't any. Those wouldn't start to show up for a few more years as a standard item on a vehicle.

Cameron got off of the horse and held it firmly. She let the horse know she was as powerful as it was. It didn't try to struggle. It continued to sniff her. It still breathed heavily from its earlier exertion. She was aware a horse would run until its heart exploded from the exertion. She believed it showed a sense of determination to carry out the task, regardless of the consequences. She also understood there was a certain amount of ignorance involved. It didn't know it could terminate itself. It was an accidental form of self termination.

Young Allison parked in back of them. She turned the vehicle off, but left the parking lights on. She figured maybe it was why they called them 'parking lights'. She made a wide approach around the side of the horse so she didn't spook it. She moved up closer to Cameron.

The horse looked at Cameron and then looked at Young Allison. It did it several times.

"The horse is really going to think all humans look the same." Young Allison said. "Even if one of us isn't human, the horse doesn't know."

Cameron was more concerned with what they were going to do with the horse.

"Maybe I should tie it to the tree over there." Cameron said. "There should be someone looking for it. I think they'd just taken the saddle off of it when it ran away."

Young Allison wasn't sure what they should do with the horse. It should be tied up though so it didn't try to run off again.

Steep Ascent

Many things are durable
Some are as tough as cement
One of the problems is
It will crack when it's bent

Some things more than others
Are easier to leave a dent
To avoid any type of collision
Isn't always possible to prevent

Things are often smoother
When everyone is content
Only weeds will flourish
When there is contempt

Which is more important
Is it the message sent
Or is it really about
What was actually meant

When the milk spills
It does little good to lament
There is bound to be a fast descent
When there was a steep ascent

Nobody