Chapter 619

Dust Cloud

Cammy waited and listened. She hoped to take the Terminator by surprise. She was sure there was only one Terminator. She would wait until he was distracted. It didn't take long. She heard the double 'clang' of metal on metal and the sound of the hoist moving. She knew the Terminator's attention would be focused on the task he was performing.

It was Showtime.

She pressed with her back and pushed with her foot. The front and top came off the crate as she stood. The sides fell off outwards at almost the same time. Only the back stayed upright because it rested against another crate.

Cammy figured she must look like some crazy armed, 'Jack In The Box', popping out of the crate the way she did. It should surprise anyone, even a Terminator. Those few precious milliseconds would give her the advantage.

The Terminator worked the hoist and turned to look at the sound of a crate coming apart. He was unsure as to what happened or why. He was slow to react when he saw a 'Metal Bitch' standing there. She seemed to appear from nowhere. He barely had any time to reflect it must be the 'Metal Bitch' who hunted Skynet throughout time. His world went dark a moment later.

Cammy fired her Taser and struck him. He went down. The sound of the metal cage, now in free fall, drew closer. It hit the bottom with a loud crash. The crate on it splintered and flew off to the side.

She already searched around her for more targets. None were apparent. Once she determined it was clear, she moved forward and pulled the Terminators chip. There could be more Terminators elsewhere or Grays somewhere else. The noise of the cage impacting the ground was bound to draw some attention if anyone was around. She hoped they would think there was some type of malfunction with the hoist system which resulted in an 'unforeseen accident'.

Trouble came soon enough. There was a light bouncing around. It indicated there was most likely a Gray holding it

"It was over there." The first Gray said.

There was the sound of running footsteps.

"What happened here?" The second Gray asked.

The Grays looked at the metal cage and the splintered crate.

"Look at this mess." The first Gray said.

The second Gray looked around the shattered debris.

"Where's the big guy?" The second Gray asked.

They saw the Terminator on the ground.

"I think the cage fell on him." The first Gray said.

The second Gray looked at the cables.

"It doesn't look like anything broke." The second Gray said.

The first Gray wasn't sure anything needed to break or come loose.

"He might have lost his grip." The first Gray said. "It's a heavy setup."

They stooped down to look at him.

"Is he dead?" The second Gray asked.

The first Gray found his question amusing.

"He was never alive." The first Gray said.

The second Gray frowned slightly.

"You know what I mean." The second Gray said. "Too bad it wasn't the 'Metal Bitch'. We could have copped a feel."

The first Gray laughed.

"I knew it's what you'd say." The first Gray said. "I think you better keep it to yourself for now. More than likely she'll be here in a few minutes to find out what all the noise was about. She was working down here earlier."

The second Gray figured it was true enough.

"Shouldn't he reboot or something?" The second Gray asked.

The first Gray prodded the Terminator with his foot.

"I think it takes like two minutes or something." The first Gray said.

The second Gray knew one thing for sure. If the 'Metal Bitch' was down, he would have her pants off in no time. All he needed was a couple of minutes. No. He was sure it wouldn't take more than a minute. She was hot. It's too bad she never smiled. He wondered if he could make her lips into a smile and if it would stay for awhile. He sure wouldn't want to be around if she rebooted afterwards. He looked at the fallen Terminator. He was a little worried.

"I don't know." The second Gray said. "He doesn't look so hot. I sure don't want them to blame us for whatever happened here. We'll end up in the bottom of some shaft like the others did."

The first Gray wasn't sure.

"We don't know what happened to the others." The first Gray said. "The 'Metal Heads' said they ran off."

The second Gray scoffed.

"I think we know what happened after they were caught." The second Gray said. "Nobody walks away from Skynet, especially when 'Bucket Brains' are around."

They looked at the Terminator further.

They both noticed his chip port was open. There was something missing. It was clear it wasn't an accident.

"He doesn't have a brain anymore." The first Gray said.

The two Grays looked at each other and went to stand.

They turned around and saw two red eyes in the gloom. They both knew it was the end of the line.

Cammy didn't care for what they said they wanted to do to the female Terminator. It didn't matter if she worked for Skynet or not. It was something they would do to her if they were able to have the same opportunity. She slammed their heads together. She used a little more force than she normally would. Both of their skulls fractured. She could feel them both reduce in width by a quarter. She tossed the lifeless forms off to the side.

She made a quick circle of the area to see what else was happening around there. She didn't spot anyone else. There were a number of crates. Most of them weren't opened yet. The set up of the main-frame seemed to have already begun but nothing was hooked up yet. It was a good thing, she hoped.

It was 'a Skynet' in the making for sure. It was a version of it anyway. Nothing was ready yet for it to be activated. Now with the power cut it never would be. She knew the location was headed for nuclear destruction.

Cammy thought there should be more Terminators around there and certainly more Grays. She checked a second time and still came up empty.

She looked up the shaft the cage crashed down in and called up to Al.

"I'm OK." Cammy said. "There was only one Terminator and two Grays. I'm sending the Terminator up. Have Frank take him to where Ed is at and have Tom retrieve the Terminator who Cameron took down earlier. Start questioning the prisoners. I'll look around further and climb back up."

Al was glad Cammy was OK. He began to wonder if he needed to go down there himself. It sounded like things were under control.

"Affirmative…." Al said.

Cammy shoved the rest of the shattered crate with its smashed contents out of the cage. She loaded the Terminator in the cage and sent it back up.

Now it was time for her to explore the area and determine what else was down there. She especially wanted to see where the power cables came in at. The place reminded her a lot of the last Skynet facility she encountered with Cameron and Savannah in Cameron's future.

Cammy looked for the best location for Cameron to place one of her Nike warheads at. She knew the place was going to need one. She wasn't going to tell Savannah unless she asked specifically. She knew Savannah wouldn't approve of the use of nuclear weapons so close to the city. There was enough of the mountain above her at her current depth to contain the blast and most of the radiation. The nuclear blast would create a cavity and the mountain would collapse in on itself. Everything would be buried under thousands of tons of rock and earth. Based upon what she saw of the original passageways, they would most likely collapse as well.

She knew the real trick was not to be around there when it happened.

Savannah watched as Ed returned the Gray he took away for interrogation. He dumped his unmoving bound form on the floor next to the other four Grays.

Ed reached down and grabbed the next one by the neck and stood him on his feet.

"Walk or die." Ed said as he prepared to lead him away.

The Gray looked terrified. He was wobbly on his feet.

Ed turned his attention to the remaining prisoners.

"You three…." Ed said. 'You move - you die. You look around - you die. You talk - you die. You lie - you die."

Not long after Ed left, Al returned and dumped another Terminator with the three already there. He took away another prisoner.

Al reached down and picked one up by the neck and stood him on his feet.

"Walk or die." Al said as he prepared to lead him away.

"You two…." Al said. "You move - you die. You look around - you die. You talk - you die. You lie - you die."

Savannah wasn't sure if the first man was still alive. She didn't bother to check. She knew they would all be terminated anyway. It didn't really matter. She wondered if Cameron would ask her to do it. If Cameron asked her, she would. She wouldn't volunteer to do it otherwise.

She killed more than a few times. It was usually combat related. She also killed in cold blood before. It seemed like the right thing to do at the time. It was probably the right thing to do now as well. It wasn't something she looked forward to or enjoyed doing.

Tom and Frank appeared with another deactivated Terminator and dumped it with the other four Terminators. Frank looked at the two unquestioned Grays.

Frank reached down and picked one up by the neck and stood him on his feet.

"Walk or die." Frank said as he prepared to lead him away.

There was only one unquestioned Gray left. Frank looked at him.

"You…." Frank said. 'You move - you die. You look around - you die. You talk - you die. You lie - you die."

Savannah didn't like the fact Cameron was still away and alone. She wanted to go to her. She was also worried about Cammy being down in a shaft somewhere. She still needed to guard one prisoner. Tom would better be able to help Cammy in a fight. Most of the areas were still in total darkness. She was in one of the few which possessed some emergency lighting.

"Tom, go to where Cammy's at." Savannah said. "I don't want her to wander off wherever she's at."

He looked at the bound prisoners and at Savannah holding her Glock and Taser. The situation appeared under control. He nodded and left.

The remaining unquestioned Gray looked at his fallen comrade. He was still breathing but unconscious.

Savannah moved close to the Gray. She released his gag and moved away from him.

"I guess it leaves you and me." Savannah said.

The Gray knew he was in a jam. He was defiant and mouthy.

"You're nothing but another bed warmer to me." The Gray said. "I'd really like to become a 'double veteran' with you. I'd laugh as I did it too. I have nothing to say to you."

Savannah didn't care for the mention of abuse and a death threat. She knew what a 'double veteran' was. She pulled her knife out.

"Then you don't need a tongue." Savannah said as she moved closer to him. "Or anything else…."

Savannah was angry now. If there wasn't the possibility of getting any information, she would kill him herself. She didn't care for what he said about her either. She was tired of fooling around.

Ed returned and dumped the body of the second Gray next to the first. He looked at the remaining Gray.

Savannah looked at the Gray with fire in her eyes.

Ed reached down and picked him up by the neck and stood him on his feet.

"Talk or die." Ed said.

Ed looked at the knife in Savannah's hand. He could see she was angry. He didn't know what occurred a short time ago.

"If he doesn't want to talk, make him." Savannah said. "Get the information. I don't care how. Break every bone in his body, one at a time. If he doesn't want to talk, he doesn't need a tongue. Make sure he doesn't have one."

Ed could see Savannah was serious. The level of anger he detected in her was unusual. He knew what Savannah wanted. The 'Chosen One' asked for his assistance.

"Affirmative…." Ed said. "He will tell me everything, or he will never talk again."

Savannah nodded. Right now it was what she wanted. She walked back to the cavern Cameron returned to. It seemed even hotter going towards the cavern than it did before. Maybe it was because she was a little upset. No. It definitely seemed warmer.

She waited to hear the last Gray scream as she walked away, but he didn't. He must have decided it was better to have a tongue….

Savannah reflected on the surge of anger which flooded through her. She wanted to do the things Jesse did before, and now Sheila did and enjoyed doing. She didn't feel troubled or guilty about it either. She knew how female prisoners were treated in the future. She saw the beds where females in the present were abducted and abused by the Grays in this time period.

She knew she could 'order' all Grays receive 'enhanced interrogation' upon capture. She was still angry. It was an interesting prospect anyway. Maybe she needed to request Sheila's presence when she went on an operation. She would do the 'dirty work' with a smile on her face. She wondered if Sheila really 'got off' like Ally said she did.

Savannah decided she would volunteer to kill all the Grays herself when Cameron came back. She would same the man she just dealt with for last. She wanted him to know what was coming, and who would deliver it. They served an evil master and needed to pay the price. She would collect it. She might even try several different termination techniques. She could have a Terminator hold one of the prisoners upright and then approach him as if he were a sentry somewhere. It would be like 'practice' to 'knife' someone from the back through a kidney or their liver. She could cut their throat from behind. She might even try to snap one of their necks just to see if she could. It would be the least messy method anyway.

None of the thoughts made her feel good. They didn't make her feel bad either. She was indifferent about it. It would be no different than stepping on a bug. The bug didn't matter. Its termination mattered even less.

She was sure it was much warmer where she was at than it was previously. Maybe it was just because she was upset and angry. She knew her skin would look very 'red' right now in her present emotional condition. She needed to get it together.

Cameron looked for the source of the heat. She started to make detailed scans of the equipment she found in the cavern as she searched. She documented everything. If they could build a better TDE which could send 'anything', it would be a big breakthrough. It would be a game changer.

She felt the heat sensation increase. She found one area where most of it came from.

The heat came out of the conduit the power cables emerged from in the rock. She thought about ripping the heavy wires out to make space. There still wouldn't be enough room for her to squeeze through to follow them.

Cameron decided she saw enough in the cavern. She wanted to check on what the two Grays were doing when they arrived. They were both down on the ground doing something before Tom used his Taser on them.

Savannah moved through the dimly lit tunnel from one cavern to the one Cameron went to.

"Cameron." Savannah called ahead.

Savannah didn't want to spook Cameron and get Tasered or shot.

Cameron didn't like Savannah by herself.

"I'm in here." Cameron said.

Savannah entered the cavern and looked around but didn't see her at first. She looked at the array of equipment. She figured Cameron must be behind it somewhere.

"Where are you?" Savannah asked.

There was some rustling noise on the ground near the side wall.

"I'm down here." Cameron said.

Savannah looked to the area where the Grays working on the floor were at. She still didn't see Cameron. There was a small tunnel. Cameron was inside of it.

Cameron heard something from the small access area. She thought it was constructed for larger power cables. She didn't know for sure.

"I think there was another Gray or a Terminator inside of this small passageway. I'm going after them." Cameron said. "I can hear them in the distance."

Savannah knew Cammy was in another cavern and went down a shaft to a lower level. She didn't want any 'friendly fire'.

"Is there any chance it can be Cammy?" Savannah asked.

Cameron remembered the direction Cammy went. It wasn't her.

"No." Cameron said. "The small passageway goes the other direction. It goes back the way we came. It's full of wires and electrical cables. I don't believe it goes to a lower level."

Savannah considered another possibility.

"Could it be some type of animal?" Savannah asked.

It was a possibility Cameron already considered.

"I don't think it is." Cameron said. "I need to find out what it is."

Savannah didn't want Cameron to go off alone. If she knew Cameron was Tasered earlier, she wouldn't allow her to go at all. She wanted to support Cameron.

"I'll follow you." Savannah said.

Cameron frowned. The space was tight and cramped. It could get narrower the further it moved away from the cavern they were in. She figured at some point it could narrow so much to where the individual she pursued wouldn't be able to turn around. They might even get stuck if they tried to go too far when there wasn't enough room. She didn't know if they would be able to draw a sidearm or not and shoot behind them. It was a possibility. She wanted Savannah to remain protected.

"No, you'll have to take off your vest and gear." Cameron said. "There could be shooting in the confined space."

Savannah noted Cameron already removed her vest. It reminded her of her recent encounter with the HK Track where she sought refuge in a maintenance access trench in the floor.

There was a slight vibration. It seemed everything shook.

Cameron quickly scrambled out of the small tunnel she started to go into. If Savannah hadn't come when she did to converse with her, she would have already been on her way through the narrow passageway.

She grabbed her vest and Savannah. She physically lifted her away from where she was standing. She ran back into the tunnel which led to the cavern where they left the prisoners.

There was the sound of an explosion and a cloud of dust and smoke came out of the small tunnel. There was a small earthquake sensation.

Savannah was unsure of what just occurred. It seemed like trouble.

"What happened?" Savannah asked.

It all went down so quickly.

Cameron didn't know for sure, but she thought she might know.

"I think someone just blew up the small tunnel. Maybe the way out too." Cameron said.

Savannah knew it was bad news but something more immediate concerned her.

"Cammy…." Savannah said.

Cammy felt and heard the muffled explosion. There was a small earthquake feeling. Her first concern was for Savannah.

She quickly abandoned her search of the area and started climbing up the cable for the hoist to get back to the main level. She saw enough already to know it was going to need a nuke to bring everything down. She would like to be the one to place it herself because everything about the location irritated her. He 'greeting' earlier still upset her. They shot at her. It didn't matter if all the individuals involved were terminated.

As she started going up. She heard rock 'crack' and 'snap'. Soon there was a cloud of dust around her. She increased the speed of her climb.

There was a cave-in occurring below her as she climbed. She wasn't sure how things were about to end. It looked pretty 'iffy' right now. She went up the cable as fast as she could move.

John Henry was alerted by his server of a new anomaly. It wasn't a good sign based on the area it originated from. He was sure it indicated trouble for the Resistance team currently deployed at the mine.

"John, there's been some kind of explosion in the mine." John Henry said.

John was on his feet in a flash. He hoped it wasn't nuclear. He needed to calm himself some.

"Are any of our people out yet?" John asked. "What do we actually know?"

John sat back down and began to look at all of his monitors.

There was no indication of such an occurrence or any additional communications.

"Negative." John Henry said.

John knew he needed to ask it. He feared the worst.

"How big of an explosion, and what type was it?" John asked.

John Henry could understand the seriousness of the report from Dan.

"Dan reported the tunnel entrance the teams went in at has collapsed. The route is blocked." John Henry said. "No one made it out. They appear to be trapped inside."

John Henry saw the look of worry on John's face. He knew John was hesitant to ask. He would try to give him some encouraging news, even if it wasn't very much.

"It wasn't nuclear." John Henry said. "I don't believe it was done by Cameron or any of our teams. There were most likely Grays and Terminators inside the mine too."

John was relieved it wasn't a nuclear explosion. They team would be terminated if it was. It didn't lessen the impact of what else may have occurred. Any type of cave-in an underground location was a serious event.

"They could be buried under tons of rock and earth." John said. "Is there any way to determine the extent of how big a cave-in it could be? Do we know what caused the explosion? Was there any type of gas present?"

John Henry already came to a different conclusion. It seemed to be more of a defensive measure as opposed to an offensive one.

"It may have been a controlled blast to seal the entrance. It would be done to protect those inside." John Henry said. "It was something done for the Skynet forces and Grays it was intended to protect."

John Henry figured once Skynet was up and running, and everything was established, the closure of the entrance would have occurred then. Skynet would've been buried deep and sealed in its own bunker where no one could get to it or even find it. If it could transmit over the electrical lines it would still be able to get out. No doubt whoever was in control of the area would want to keep the power lines functioning for their own use. As long as the power lines functioned, Skynet would be able to communicate.

John weighed the options. There were several Terminator strike forces in the area. It was a lot of manpower, or machine power in this case.

"I want all our people to start an excavation project now." John said.

John Henry could see it for what it was.

"No." John Henry said.

John was already irritated. John Henry's answer made him more so.

"What?" John asked.

John Henry didn't want to make the same mistake they made before.

"We'll repeat the 'Day Of Loss' again if we do." John Henry said.

John understood the warning. There weren't many choices.

"So what do we do?" John asked. "Pull out?"

John Henry didn't have a definitive answer.

"It's one option." John Henry said.

John needed a better answer. He looked at the images of the mine area on his monitors.

"Do you have any better ones?" John asked. "There was no other way in or out of there."

John Henry could think of one right away.

"There is the conduit the power cable runs through." John Henry said.

John thought about it. It might be a more stable route. It might be a 'back door'.

"It may be our quickest route." John said. "We can remove the power lines and enlarge it as we go along."

John Henry mulled over another idea.

"It's another option." John Henry said.

John was confused. What else was there?

"Is there any other option?" John asked.

John Henry wasn't sure.

"Perhaps…." John Henry said.

Ally and Sheila were after the white van. They needed to stop it and question the Grays. They suspected there was at least one Terminator which left the building with the Grays in the white van. They needed to know where the Terminator went, and what they were up to. They suspected he possessed an RPG.

CamNet sent one Terminator to assist them and retrieve the hard drives taken from the other buildings. There were also a number of phones taken from the Grays they terminated.

Ally began to think about what they were doing. It just didn't add up to her.

"Wait." Ally said. "This is a set up."

Sheila was on an intercept course.

"What are you talking about?" Sheila asked. "We'll be there in four minutes."

Ally was worried. It seemed like a 'sucker play' to her the more she thought about it.

"The Terminator is going to sacrifice the Grays to draw us out." Ally said. "I think he knew we were coming."

It didn't make sense to Sheila.

"Then why didn't he, or they, take us at the building?" Sheila asked. "They could have ambushed us."

Ally looked in the back at all the things they confiscated. There was a lot of valuable information on them.

"He wants everything we have back, or destroyed." Ally said. "It's an attempt to protect Skynet."

Sheila thought about it for a few seconds. She let off of the gas. She made a power turn and went down an alley. She checked her rear view mirror. She wanted to make sure they didn't pick up a tail.

"I hope there are no HK drones around here." Sheila said.

Ally conveyed her suspicions to CamNet and told her to have her Terminator take evasive action. CamNet told them the sky was clear of any HK drones. She also filled them in on the bad news from the mine.

Sheila could see it for the seriousness of it.

"Can we dig them out?" Sheila asked.

CamNet informed them John and John Henry started work on a few things.

Ally wondered about the time factor.

"None of this sounds promising." Ally said.

Sheila really wanted some answers now. She wanted to get rid of their cargo as quickly as possible.

"We need to hand off what we have to CamNet." Sheila said.

Ally knew what was next, but she wanted to hear Sheila say it.

"Then what will happen?" Ally asked.

Sheila was upset about the news at the mine. She wanted someone to 'pay' for what happened. She knew where she could collect.

"We still need to get some answers." Sheila said. "The Grays are the best bet."

Ally didn't think it was so simple anymore. Nobody was going to go down without a fight.

"What about the Terminator associated with them?" Ally asked. "He'll blow them up to get to us."

The Metal girls needed to rethink their options.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

I Am

I AM the Owner
Am I in control
How was I so ignorant
To allow my life to be stole

I AM the Master
To my mind but a slave
How is it possible
This power to them I gave

I AM the Captain
I should be renown
Everyone else to the lifeboats
With my ship MUST I go down

I AM the Boss
My heart and mind without power
How do I NOT just quit
From life I cringe and cower

I AM the Queen
Yet have no realm
How time destroys the mind
Life crushes and can overwhelm

Nobody