Chapter 474
Temporal Tussle
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Future Timeline - Undetermined Error:
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Cammy backed up and concealed herself as best as she could in the rocks. She disabled the latch on the hatch which led inside the hill. She would let the trio move down a little distance before she followed them. She didn't want to get too close unless she was able to gain a clear advantage. The Skynet trio was armed with modern weapons. Her weapons were primitive. She would need to be much closer to the trio for them to be effective. She needed to move with stealth now. A few loose stones could give away her position.
If the trio were to turn and engage her with gunfire, she would be trapped between them and the hatch which led inside of the hill. There was bound to be more Terminators inside who would exit and be in back of her. She would definitely be trapped between a rock and a hard place, quite literally.
She watched the trio move down. They walked along but didn't really seem to actually search for anything. It was routine to them and they didn't want to be out there in the first place. The Terminator carried a plasma rifle. The two Grays each held a battered M4. She saw one Gray also carried a Taser of some sort. More importantly, both of the Grays carried water. She decided to take them down for the water. She wanted the water for Savannah. She wanted their clothing as well. The Terminator was going to be the problem. It didn't matter. She NEEDED the water for Savannah.
When she left Savannah earlier, she was very dehydrated. She didn't use very much of the water because there was only a limited amount. Hopefully the drip at the rock would replenish some of the water in the canteen for her. There was fresh water available right in front of her. She needed to take down the two Grays as silently as possible. if she could get the Taser away from one of them, she should be able to deal with the Terminator as well.
Cammy stalked them from a distance. She knew she needed to watch out for the Terminator, but she was going to get the water for Savannah. She began to close up on them. She needed to make sure she didn't blow it and get involved in a gun battle. A bow and arrow, along with a spear, would be very lopsided weapons for a gunfight. They certainly weren't going to be in her favor.
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Cameron's Future Timeline:
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Cameron could hear the voices getting louder. She didn't think they were searching for her. Maybe they were. It seemed to her they should use a little more combat discipline if they were. Either way they were out there doing whatever they were doing. She wondered if they were part of the movement she spotted up on the hillside earlier. She was sure if they knew there was a hostel Terminator outside, they would send an HK drone. Maybe she tripped a sensor. She didn't know if she did or not. It was what it was.
Unless the Skynet forces were able to view some type of visual image, they might think it was some type of an animal. Based upon what she observed so far, they didn't seem too concerned about whatever it was. It could be a routine patrol for all she knew. She needed to maneuver carefully among the rocks and try to base her observations on where their voices emanated from.
She saw two Grays at one point. They followed a Terminator. She was unsure how many Terminators there were. Only the two Grays were talking. She didn't know if there were more behind them or not. The Terminator was her biggest threat since he carried a plasma rifle. There could be a whole squad of them for all she knew. A squad could easily be double the number of individuals she already spotted. Perhaps they were maneuvering to get behind her. The two who were talking might be decoys to get someone to focus their attention on them while the others moved into position behind her. She needed to see if she could eliminate any of the threats silently, or if she would need to continue to avoid them. She moved away from her position.
Cameron started to stalk them. She reminded herself about the Terminator tracks she followed earlier. Those tracks weren't made by anyone from the group she spotted so far. She was unsure what was out there. The one thing she knew, it would be trouble.
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Future Timeline - Undetermined Error:
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Savannah heard the voices. They were men's voices. She knew it was bad news for her. She held the canteen and put the lid on it. She was glad she was in possession of it when she detected the threat. If the men passed by where she was and spotted it, they would know someone needed to be close by. They would start to look. They would probably do more than just a casual look around. She took the canteen with her and rapidly returned to her hiding place. She put it inside the opening. She tried to squeeze into the enlarged opening herself. It was still too small. She could almost fit but not quite. Her effort caused some broken pieces of rock to fall out onto the ground below, after they hit the rocks underneath her.
She placed her back against the rock and drew the revolver. She personally checked to make sure when the revolver was cocked, or the trigger pulled through double action, the next round to rotate around was a live round. She held her spear in her left hand. She thought about placing it inside of the opening but was worried she may need to use it. There was no way to know if the two corroded cartridges in the revolver would work or not.
Savannah tried to make herself part of the rock. She was afraid it was only a matter of time until she was spotted. She was in a shadow. The sun was bright, even if the sky was hazy. If someone looked in her direction they would see her. She still didn't know if it was Scavengers or Grays who were out.
If they were Scavengers, she knew what she was going to have to do. If there were more than two of them, there was only one way it could end. She glanced down at the revolver in her hand and swallowed hard.
The voices were close….
The Grays followed the Terminator. They really would rather be back inside the base. It was nothing but a hassle for them to need to leave the interior of the base and go outside and wander around in the hot sun. There was never anything out there anyway. If they even saw an animal of some type they would kill it, so it wouldn't trip any of the sensors and make them need to go outside to search again later on.
The Terminator was suspicious of something. He wasn't sure what. The Grays slowed him down. He briefly thought of terminating them himself. They annoyed him and disrupted his hearing. They served no purpose. If they actually did encounter anything and needed to fight, he would do what he wanted to them. After it was over and he was the victor, he would terminate them anyway and say they fell in combat. It wouldn't be the first time he dealt with the parasites who infested Skynet's domain. The fewer parasitic humans there were, the better it would be for Skynet. He wanted to get rid of the Grays for now. Maybe they could serve a useful purpose for once. He decided to use them for bait.
"You two, search over there." The Terminator said.
The two Grays looked at each other and went where he said. They wondered if something was up. The Terminator went around the backside of a large rock and they lost sight of him.
The first Gray looked to make sure it was clear.
"What's up with Brutus?" The first Gray asked. "He seems kind of 'off'."
The second Gray checked too before he spoke. They didn't want the Terminator to hear them say something derogatory about him, especially when they were in an isolated location.
"I think we upset him." The second Gray said.
The first Gray noticed as time went on, the Terminators all seemed to become irritated easier than they did a few years back. It was a slow progression, but nevertheless it was there.
"They sure get touchy for machines at times." The first Gray said.
The second Gray noticed it as well. He was sure he knew where the blame went.
"I think we're a bad influence on them." The second Gray said.
The first Gray looked up at the sky. It was hot out.
"We should just go back and stop wasting our time out here." The first Gray said.
The second Gray touched his Taser. He looked around twice before he spoke.
"We could always 'zap' him and say he malfunctioned." The second Gray said.
The first Gray suppressed a laugh. The thought crossed his mind more than a few times when he was out on similar useless patrols. They would need to destroy the chip so it couldn't be reviewed if they took him down. There would be a lot of questions if the chip were destroyed as well. It didn't seem likely under the current conditions.
"If I thought we could get away with it, I would." The first Gray said.
The two Grays continued around some more large rocks. They didn't like being separated from the Terminator under the current conditions.
"We should stay close to the Terminator." The second Gray said.
The first Gray quickly looked around.
"Why?" The first Gray asked.
The second Gray saw the way the Terminator looked at them before he sent them away.
"Maybe he's thinking the same thing we are." The second Gray said.
The first Gray noticed it too, but didn't think much about it. Now he did. He thought about what they discussed about the Terminator just a short time ago. It could very well be a two way street as far as the thought went.
"Do you think he'd light us up?" The first Gray asked.
The second Gray heard stories before. One never knew.
"I really don't want to find out." The second Gray said.
The two Grays paused in the shadow of a large boulder.
The first Gray wanted to get back inside the base. There were more pleasant things waiting for him.
"After my shift, I want to score some 'slash'." The first Gray said. "It's my turn tonight."
The second Gray was with the 'Metal Whore' two nights ago. There used to be a selection of them, but they were all gone except for one now. He liked the variety which was available before. At least they did whatever he told them to do. Now the last remaining 'Metal Slut' was used around the clock. They were each allowed three hours with her once a week. He'd rather have it be one hour three times a week. If he was just going to 'get some', he didn't need a long time to take care of business. He would actually prefer to have five minutes a day for seven days a week. Well, maybe make it ten minutes a day for seven days a week.
"All we have is the same 'Metal Whore'." The second Gray said. "I miss the variety. I want some of the Resistance sluts back."
The first Gray watched the second Gray abuse and torture the new Resistance females when they were rounded up. He didn't care for it. He just wanted to 'use' them and move on to the next one. Sometimes he wondered if some of the guys got off more on the violence than they did on the sex.
"You just like to hear them scream." The first Gray said.
The second Gray smiled as he reminisced about the 'old days'. There was plenty of action between shifts then. Now they all hid like rats.
"I like to see the terror in their eyes more." The second Gray said. "It's a total turn on for me. They already think they know how bad it's going to be and are ready for it. They quickly realize in the first few seconds it's going to be a lot worse than they ever imagined was possible. I'm starting to pull some 'wood' right now just thinking about it."
The first Gray shook his head in disgust.
"TMI, dude, just don't get any weird ideas about me." The first Gray said.
The second Gray looked at the first Gray and laughed.
"We'll see." The second Gray said as he laughed some more.
The two Grays moved again.
They were on the side of the rock protrusion where Savannah was at. She heard the whole conversation. She didn't want to get captured by them. It sounded to her as if there were only two of them. By the nature of their conversation they were Grays. She would have liked to have taken it as good news but she couldn't. They indicated there was a Terminator with them. She still didn't know how many more there could be which she didn't hear, or hear about.
The Terminator moved out and saw something soon afterwards. There were footprints. It was what he suspected. He didn't expect them to be the type he found. They were from a Terminator, and small. There may be a female Terminator out there. He was unsure if any of the 'Metal Whores' escaped from the 'servicing' area. Skynet already sent most of the female Terminator on temporal missions. Those which remained were programmed to be 'Metal Whores' for the Grays.
Even most of those were sent away at this point. It's possible one of them malfunctioned and tried to escape. Sometimes they went bad, no one knew why. Someone told him they didn't like being programmed as 'Metal Whores'. He wasn't sure why it would be a problem. A job was a job. They should get over themselves and support the cause. What was the big deal anyway? It wasn't like they needed to face combat like the rest of them did.
The Terminator smiled. When he captured her, he would give her to the two Grays to shut them up. They could do what they wanted to her. He decided he would watch. It always amused him to do so. It would be the perfect time to terminate all three of them. He saw no use for any of them. They would never see it coming….
The two Grays moved closer to the rock overhang where Savannah was hidden.
"I haven't spotted anything yet." The first Gray said.
The second Gray scoffed.
"I wouldn't hold my breath." The second Gray said. "We never do."
The first Gray looked around the area.
"I really think we should wrap this up." The first Gray said.
The second Gray didn't want there to be trouble.
"I'll let you tell bucket brain you think everything's under control." The second Gray said.
The first Gray fiddled with the front of his pants.
"I'd really like to go back." The first Gray said.
The second Gray looked up at the sun for a moment.
"It is pretty hot out here." The second Gray said.
The first Gray took a long pull from his canteen before he put it away.
"I gotta take a leak." The first Gray said. "I already drank most of my water."
The second Gray just wanted to get in the shade.
"TMI, dude…." The second Gray said. "Do what you have to by those rocks. I'm going to check over by the trees. It looks cooler over there."
The second Gray was out on the same type of patrols before. It was always the same thing, nothing. It would be no different today. It always was a waste of time. It would turn out to be some scrawny animal. He would kill it anyway just for having to come out there in the first place. Maybe he would wound it first to make it suffer. If he could corner it, he would taunt it as he injured it further. The louder he could make it cry, the better he would feel. He started to get a little 'rise' out of the thought of hurting something. He really wished it could be a human female. The terror he could see in their eyes of him was a turn on. Didn't the stupid sluts know they weren't good for anything else?
The first Gray headed for the rocks. He leaned his rifle against some rocks to hold it up as he prepared to relieve himself. The rifle slid and then fell over on its own a few seconds later. It made a metallic 'clack' sound as it impacted the rocks. It fell in back of a larger rock. The Gray already had his hands full. It would need to wait until he was done.
"Typical." The first Gray muttered. "The piece of crap probably doesn't work anyway."
The wind blew a small gust, and then a stronger one. Dust swirled in the air.
The first Gray switched the direction he was 'aiming' so as not to get any 'blow back' of his urine from the wind. He wanted to make sure he was pointed 'down wind'.
As the stream of amber fluid exited his body, he saw what looked like a section of a leg. What the Hell? It looked like a female leg, and it was bare. He leaned forward to peer up at what he thought he saw as the flow continued. He figured it couldn't possibly be what he thought. He knew it would be a great find if it was one.
What he found was death….
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Cameron's Future Timeline:
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Cameron observed the Terminator ditch the Grays. She watched as he picked up her tracks. Damn, she thought. She was careless trying to flank them. Now the Terminator was after her. She lost sight of the two Grays. Maybe it was all a ploy to flank her. Around every boulder was a blind spot. Now she needed to watch in front of her, and in back of her. She still didn't know how many there were for sure. She only knew about the ones she spotted. There was possibly still another half of the squad out there with her.
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Future Timeline - Undetermined Error:
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Cammy saw the group with the Terminator and Grays split up. It wasn't good. It would be easier to dispatch the Grays, but the Terminator was the threat. As she watched them, the Terminator started to stalk something. She was afraid Savannah heard them and tried to move away, now the Terminator was after her. She decided to follow the Terminator. She needed to protect Savannah.
She glanced down at her weapons. It didn't give her much confidence. It was all she had. She would make the most of it. She readied an arrow.
Savannah previously cocked the revolver as the voices drew closer. Now it would only take a gentle touch of the trigger to fire it through single action. The rounds looked like they were wet at some point. The brass casings showed corrosion on them. She decided she would fire both rounds in case the first round failed to fire. She would pull the trigger a second time through double action and try the last round. If it failed, she would resort to her spear and rock knife. She was going to need to use her other weapons anyway since she knew they were at least two of them.
She didn't plan to surrender to anyone. She would fight with her hands if she needed to. She wasn't going down without a fight, either figuratively or in actuality.
Savannah heard the men talking. It seemed they were separated now. She was sure they were searching for her. Her heart skipped a beat. There was movement right next to her. She heard something make a metallic scrape, then thud, and a metallic 'clack' into the rocks as someone said, 'Typical, the piece of crap probably doesn't work anyway.'
She moved the muzzle of the revolver in the direction of the sound. She needed to keep her cool and wait. She was ready to kill and keep killing.
Savannah felt the wind gust. Suddenly there was a small stream of urine right below and in front of her. She moved the revolver to the spot and waited. She knew she was milliseconds away from being discovered. Her finger tensed on the trigger. She needed to back off a little bit before she accidentally pulled it. There weren't any rounds to waste.
A face slowly appeared before her as it looked up at her. The splatter of urine continued below her. There was a look of astonishment on the man's face. He was slow to react. It looked as if he was about to call for help. She pulled the trigger. All she heard was a loud 'click'. It was as she feared, the round was defective….
Cammy followed the Terminator. She closed up on him. The Terminator was preoccupied. He was definitely after something or someone. It must be Savannah. She spotted the tracks the Terminator followed. She was surprised at the way they looked. She immediately saw they weren't Savannah's tracks. They were the tracks of another Terminator. There were two different Terminators out there now and one of them was female. The footprints weren't large at all. They were the same size as hers.
She didn't know what the new development meant. Maybe there was already a Terminator out looking for them. She thought she spotted something a couple of times in the distance. She didn't have time to cover her tracks as she hurried with Savannah.
Things might be worse than she thought. She was going to be at a major disadvantage if she needed to fight two Terminators. She pressed on. She needed to protect Savannah. She couldn't let anything happen to her.
Savannah immediately pulled the trigger a second time through double action. The second and last round fired. The noise was deafening in the confined space as the revolver fired. The round struck the man right above his left eye. The section of his head vanished in a crimson spray. The revolver was only two inches away from his forehead when it fired.
She knew she needed to move. She dropped the revolver and grabbed her spear. She dropped down from where she was to ground level. She hoped to acquire a better weapon. She looked for the man's weapon. She didn't see where it fell behind the rocks. She didn't know where to look for it. She needed to move. The gunshot was going to draw the rest of them to where the sound came from. Earlier she picked a second hiding spot. It was what she headed for now. She sure hoped Cammy was still around. As far as she knew she was already inside of the hill. She wasn't going to be able to rely on anyone to assist her. She was going to need to fight. It was what she intended to do.
It just hit the fan and she was out of ammo. She ran with her spear in front of her. She was ready to make a thrust with it. She only hoped she could get a hold of a weapon, a real weapon. She hoped her appearance would cause anyone she faced a moment of hesitation. It did the first time.
The shot echoed around the area.
The other Gray crouched down and released the safety on his M4.
"Bill?" He called as he hoped for an answer.
He was greeted by silence. It was a new turn of events.
The Terminator heard the gunshot and wondered what one of the idiot Grays shot at. The report of the shot echoed around him. It seemed off. Something wasn't right. Wait. It was a pistol shot. It wasn't a round from the battered M4 carbines they carried. Neither one of the Grays was armed with a pistol.
The Terminator brought his plasma rifle up as he searched for a target. He was aware there may be more than one Terminator. He moved forward around the rocks. He found one. It was right in front of him. It was a Terminator, a female. It was a 'Metal Bitch'.
Cammy heard the shot and saw the Terminator bring his plasma rifle up. It can't be good, she thought. It was time to enter the fight.
She took aim and fired an arrow at the Terminator. When the first arrow hit him he turned and looked in her direction. She immediately shot three more arrows. The drawstring broke on her bow. It was useless now. She moved forward with her spear….
Closing monologue by Cameron:
Tussle
Being the physically strongest
Has its advantages and perks
If the power is used unkindly
Those who do it look like jerks
Not everything is measured
In brute force and domination
Those attacked in their mind
Can face quicker termination
There is a force which is unseen
It can bring anyone to their knees
They will grovel, crawl and beg
And hope someone hears their pleas
That is the power of love
Something which exists inside a mind
Some are lucky enough
To have it returned in kind
The true strength is within
Not on the outside with muscle
The real battle is when
Hearts and love tussle
Nobody