Chapter 664

I NEED HER

John was worried the situation was growing in size faster than they could get resources up to where Cammy and Steve were at. He needed to have more troops closer to support the operation, especially since Cameron and Savannah were both headed there soon. He was ready to take a little preemptive action on his own.

"How close can we fly a Metal Strike Team in and not be spotted?" John asked as he looked at the satellite map. "I don't want anyone to know where we let them off at. I want their arrival to be a surprise."

John Henry looked at various satellite images as well as topographical maps of the surrounding area. He wanted to find a spot which was secluded and wouldn't be detected easily by anyone.

"It would have to be on the backside of this ridge here." John Henry said as he pointed.

John could see the distance to remain clandestine and reach the objective was quite significant. It all boiled down to time.

"It would take them several hours to reach the objective." John said. "Even at a Terminator's pace."

John Henry knew there was a quicker way to get a 'MIKE Force' up to Cammy and Steve if John didn't want to wait for the Metal Strike Team to get into place. It all came down to what would advertise their presence, or what would remain in the shadows.

"We can fly them there in five minutes right up to the communications array. The only problem is, everyone will know they're there." John Henry said. "I think stealth would be better at this point of the operation. There isn't very much we know yet other than the presence of the enemy. We don't know how many of them there are or what the extent of their activity is."

John didn't want to take any additional chances. It was clear the operation was going to go ballistic, probably sooner rather than later. He wanted more Terminators up on the mountain to back up their operation.

"Fly half the Metal Strike Team there now to the alternate site and get them moving. They'll need to hike in on foot." John said. "Unless this goes hot in the next few hours, it should give us an advantage. They need to watch out for enemy surveillance, or even an LP of some type."

John Henry quickly made the arrangements. He received some disturbing news. It could throw the whole operation into jeopardy. It was quite an unexpected turn of events. It never happened to them before, but there was always a first time for everything.

"I have just received some bad news." John Henry said.

Bad news wasn't new to John, but the way John Henry said it seemed to indicate it would be worse than normal. It was best to deal with it as soon as possible.

"What's gone wrong now?" John asked.

John Henry double checked the severity of the situation. It was as he first thought.

"The Blackhawk has experienced a small electrical fire." John Henry said. "It's inoperable as of now. It's going to need some repairs, even if they're field repairs."

John saw it for the bad news it was. Now their teams up on the mountain were really isolated. The timing seemed very unfortunate. He wanted to verify exactly when the problem occurred.

"It just malfunctioned right now?" John asked. "This isn't a good time."

John Henry could see it wasn't a good time. He didn't think any time was a good time for it to happen. He did think there could have been a worse time. They didn't have a lot of control over what actually just happened.

"It's better to happen now, than if it was in flight when it happened." John Henry said.

John could see it might have been worse. It wasn't. He knew there was a vast amount of financial resources available to them. He wanted to use some of them and take some precautionary action as soon as possible. He wanted a backup plan put into effect as soon as possible.

"Procure another helicopter immediately." John said.

John received a surprise communication.

"Hello, love. We're near the Van Nuys airport." Sheila said. "Ally is with me."

It was a surprise to John on more than one level. He wondered about the timing of everything. At first he thought it was Jesse again. Now he thought otherwise since Ally was with her. He wanted to make sure who it was this time.

"What are you doing there, Sheila?" John asked.

Ally butted into the conversation and seemed a little indignant.

"We were looking at helicopter rentals." Ally said. "Leave it at that."

John Henry whispered to John.

"They must be on a mission for Cameron for something." John Henry whispered. "I don't have any record of an assignment for them. It must be an 'off the books' assignment. Those are conducted for Cameron, not for the Resistance."

John didn't want to waste any time to worry about the current circumstances as to why they were there, or what they were doing. He wanted action.

"Ally, get one now." John said. "You have unlimited funds available."

Ally knew funds were never a problem for them anyway. They were always able to find new 'donors' to their cause to stamp out future Scavengers. Besides, if they needed something, they would take it anyway. It's what Terminators did. As long as no one made a big deal about it, there wouldn't need to be any terminations. They could compensate whoever they borrowed something from later on. She didn't want John to worry. She glanced over at Sheila and winked.

"We have plenty of cash too." Ally said. "It was a donation."

John looked at John Henry.

"They must have been on some kind of drug or crime raid…." John Henry whispered. "Cameron always scores a lot of cash on those types of operations."

They both knew Cameron conducted operations outside the scope of the normal Resistance operations. It always kept them stocked with vehicles and plenty of cash to help fund everything. They knew a side result was a reduction in future Scavengers. There were a few storerooms full of millions of dollars in cash at both the Resistance base and Cameron's base from all of the activity.

John didn't want anyone to take things too far. They should be able to work within normal channels to get what they need. It should still be able to be done rapidly. He didn't want there to be any unnecessary terminations.

"I want both of you to work with John Henry and get it done." John said. "I want another helicopter in play as soon as possible. Our people on the mountain are short staffed. I want to be able to get additional help up to them in a moment's notice."

CamNet already informed the Metal girls what they would find when they arrived at the airport. There were several options which would be available to them.

"The biggest one here, other than a Skycrane, is an Iroquois." Sheila said. "The Skycrane is currently configured for firefighting duties. It would be of limited use to us. It makes a lot of racket as well. It's much noisier than an Iroquois will be."

Sheila figured they could always fill the water container with aviation fuel and dump it on top of a target. It would be the reverse procedure normally used to combat a fire. They could use it to start one.

Ally wanted to know what they could do to assist with the repair of the Blackhawk. They needed to know a little more about the nature of the problem. There were a lot of parts to a helicopter.

"What about spare parts for the Blackhawk?" Ally asked. "What do we need to collect and bring with us?"

John Henry didn't know what the availability of any spare parts would be for any specific aircraft. Maybe they could jury-rig something. He knew the problem was electrical in nature. There were a series of wires which caught on fire before they were extinguished. The Terminators there should be able to fix it.

"Get whatever electrical wiring harnesses or parts as quickly as you can." John Henry said.

John wanted another helicopter there ASAP. He wanted to have the ability to move additional troops up to the top of the mountain as quickly as possible.

"I want you to hurry." John said. "I need to be able to move more troops up if they're needed. Right now they're not needed. If there are, I want to be able to supply them."

Sheila could tell John seemed a little on edge. They would be able to get everything done very quickly, one way or another.

"Relax, love." Sheila said. "We're on it."

John Henry went to work and made the calls or transfers necessary to have the funds available for the transactions. He spun the story they were a small film production company and they needed some aerial work done ASAP. All the necessary paperwork was fabricated and put into play.

It was their first use of using the movie industry as a cover for their activities. They only learned about it a couple of days ago when they took down another Skynet entity. It was the ploy they used for building HK Tracks. If they would have been discovered by anyone, or what they actually were was questioned, they would have been reported as movie props for a science fiction film. If anyone was too persistent, the Skynet forces would have terminated them.

Young Allison knew the current situation with the Blackhawk was a problem. She wanted to make sure Savannah and Cameron were properly backed up. She wanted to take some local action on her own. She knew there were options open to them and they were close by. She personally viewed them when she went flying with Cameron on more than one occasion.

"There are helicopters at the local airport." Young Allison said. "I saw them there when I was there. There were a few of them. Let's go get one."

Young Allison stood up. She motioned for Anna to come with her.

Anna wasn't about to let Young Allison stick her neck out. She wanted to make the rules clear from the beginning. There were certain things which could and couldn't happen. What Young Allison indicated was one of the ones which couldn't.

"You're not going." Anna said. "I can go, but you're not."

Cam appeared at the bunker door and looked down at Anna and Young Allison. The 'Cameron' in her desired a mission immensely.

"I can go." Cam said.

Young Allison believed she made herself clear previously. It was time for the Metal girls to earn their keep. It was time to do what they were constructed for.

"Somebody needs to go." Young Allison said. "They'll need two smaller helicopters to make up for the Blackhawk being down. It will also give them better versatility. John only attempted to procure one. I believe it's shortsightedness on his part. I'm authorizing the procurement of a second one, and its immediate deployment to the temporary desert base, where the Blackhawk is currently inoperable."

Anna could see the plan possessed merit. Technically Cam was 'extra' because she was there with Vanna. She didn't want to do an 'end run' around John or the Command Center. She would prefer if Cam left before Vanna wanted to accompany her. Allison might want to as well. She still didn't plan to let Young Allison go.

"Let me clear everything with John." Anna said.

Young Allison didn't wait around for the 'wheels of bureaucracy' to get moving. It wasn't something any of them needed to think about. It was about what needed to be done immediately. She contacted CamNet directly.

"CamNet already has 'cleared' it." Young Allison said as she looked up from her monitor. "She's making all the arrangements now. I told her it's what I wanted immediately."

Cam and Anna looked at each other. They both thought Young Allison was pretty close to overstepping her bounds, especially since she bypassed the Command Center.

Young Allison didn't want them to delay any longer. She wanted them to get moving.

"I want both of you to go." Young Allison said. "Everything should be ready when you arrive."

Hanna listened to what was going on and put everything into perspective by the priorities Cameron previously established. Young Allison's protection and training came first. Anna should remain with her. Since Ally and Sheila were already involved, she felt an obligation to join them. It was a while since she was able to go on an operation with them. She wanted to make sure they were supported as well.

"I'll go with Cam." Hanna said. "Anna will remain here with you. Holly will remain with the other girls."

Young Allison looked at Anna and then nodded to the other two Metal girls.

"Make it so." Young Allison said. "Do it - now."

Cam and Hanna left.

Anna was sure Young Allison just did everything on her own. She wanted to know some more of the details. Everything happened extremely quickly.

"Did you ask CamNet to do it?" Anna asked.

Young Allison thought about bending the truth some. There was no need to. CamNet knew what she wanted.

"I was going to, but CamNet asked me." Young Allison said. "All I needed to do was say, 'yes'. I said, 'yes'."

Anna saw Young Alison went back to work on her keyboard.

"What are you doing now?" Anna asked.

Young Allison was pleased with the action. She wanted Savannah, Cameron, and the rest of the team protected.

"I'm about to tell CamNet, 'Thank You'." Young Allison said.

Anna looked at the response.

'You're Welcome.' CamNet typed.

Anna wasn't sure how Cameron was going to like the latest development. The threat to them was low. Cam and Hanna could obtain the helicopter and head out. It showed Young Allison was willing to act on her own, and completely bypass John and John Henry. She bypassed everything associated with the Command Center. It also showed she was willing to send her protection away to assist Savannah and Cameron. It was exactly what she indicated earlier.

There was another small alarm bell which went off in the back of her head. It seemed CamNet and Young Allison developed a type of 'closeness' which was more than a 'working' relationship. She noticed it before on some of their other interactions. She wasn't sure what she should say to Cameron about it. She looked up at one of the security monitors. She was pretty sure whatever she said should be done when they were alone and in private, preferably in a secluded location. She didn't want to bring any negative feedback down upon herself. She would also need to monitor the 'problem' and see what else developed.

CamNet and Young Allison both viewed themselves as 'isolated and alone'. They could identify with each other's problems as well as their personal anguish. It was an unhealthy combination no matter how it was viewed.

It was possible they all missed the warning signs of what was about to happen.

Cameron left the area of the packing sheds. She sped to get to the aerial tramway. It was still going to take her some time to get there. What was there now was more important to her than her previous mission.

John Henry tracked where all of the Resistance forces currently were at. He also tracked where all the white vans were at which were tagged. There was a new development which needed to be checked out.

"Cameron, one of the white vans which left earlier is near you and stopped." John Henry said. "I'm not sure why they're stopped where they're stopped at."

Cameron was someone irritated to hear the news. Her mindset was currently focused elsewhere. She wanted to get to the aerial tramway as quickly as possible. She needed to know more about the white van.

"Where are they and what are they doing?" Cameron asked.

John thought the implications of what needed to be done were clear. He decided to spell them out for Cameron.

"It's what you need to find out." John said. "You're the closest one. We need to know what they're trying to do, before they do it."

Cameron didn't care for John's attitude, or the interruption in her plans. She believed her original goal was more important.

"I'm busy." Cameron said.

Cameron's tracking disappeared off of their maps.

John and John Henry quickly looked at each other. John indicated he wanted a private line to Cameron.

John Henry gave John a secure line with Cameron. He was more than willing to stay out of it, whatever it was. Normally the interaction would grow extremely heated quite fast.

John wanted Cameron to know his concern was as deep as hers for Savannah. There were others who could help Savannah sooner and they were almost there. He was actually a little surprised when she took his call. Perhaps their earlier 'personal interaction' influenced her a little more than it normally would.

"What is it, John?" Cameron said.

John decided to start out with the facts.

"Gail and Jesse will be there soon for Savannah. They're almost there." John said. "Cameron, I'm worried about Savannah too. She's more than capable of operating on her own. We both know it. Everybody knows it."

Cameron still felt a sense of frustration.

"She must be protected. You need her." Cameron said. "YOU NEED HER."

John didn't want to get into a personal discussion again, especially not now.

"Cameron…." John said.

Cameron felt a lot of tension inside of her. Her next words just blurted out of her mouth.

"I need her." Cameron said. "I NEED HER."

John could feel the 'pain' in Cameron. He wanted to reassure her. Maybe he wanted to reassure himself too. They needed to make sure a more complicated issue didn't develop if they missed something important.

"Savannah's not in immediate danger now." John said. "She will be later on. Check out the van first. We need to know what they're doing. We don't want to have a bigger problem later on we could've prevented now."

Cameron's tracker showed back up on the map.

"I'll take a quick look." Cameron said.

She received the information from John Henry and headed off to check on the Grays. She was worried about Savannah, and now she needed to deal with a new issue. She was highly agitated now. Someone was going to have to 'pay' because they made her feel like she currently did….

Savannah watched Bob board and leave on the next cable car. He made sure she possessed a set of keys for their SUV. She already procured the items for Gail and Jesse as he watched her.

As soon as Bob's cable car left the station, she headed outside. She would wait in the SUV. She could watch the parking lot and the base station both from The SUVs location. It also gave her the option to drive away if she needed to. She could use the SUV as a battering ram, or to create an incident to block the road. She could procure another vehicle, probably by carjacking one, and flee the area if necessary. It should lead anyone away from the aerial tramway and in pursuit of her. She would try to lead them into another one of their teams as soon as they could set up an ambush.

Savannah put the keys in the ignition and held her Taser in her hand. She could start the SUV immediately if she needed to flee, or use it as a two ton weapon. Her Taser was hot and ready to fire. She needed to keep watching her mirrors to make sure no one tried to approach the SUV from behind or in her blind spots.

It wasn't often Savannah was alone without others nearby somewhere. She started to think about her life. Was it her life? Was it ever really her life? Sarah tried to give her some of the things a girl should have growing up. There were more than a few times when she missed her Mother. First her Father was taken, and then her Mother. Then her 'Other Mother' was gone. She lost everything. A feeling of grief began to overwhelm her. She knew she needed to fight it. It wasn't the place to have feelings, at least not feelings like she felt.

Her mind drifted to her life and how she grew up. Vanna would never allow any boys, or males, around her when they went out, if they went swimming, or if they went to the park. When she was younger she never understood why Vanna was so protective of her. She knew of the hardships of the future, but never really understood the pain and terror Vanna endured. In reality it was what she endured at the hands of others. She later found out they were mostly men, and some were women. When Vanna told her of the things done to her, and the things she witnessed with her own eyes, she ended up throwing up. Vanna told her she would, but she wanted Savannah to know the truth. She tearfully told her of things she never even told Allison. She was too ashamed of them to tell anyone but 'herself'. The sad part was, Vanna said there were other things she still couldn't talk about.

It was a future without John Connor. Even though it wasn't Vanna's intention, it served to reinforce her position in the future, and how she was to protect it and protect John Connor. It would mainly be with the use of her body. She understood from a young age her body wasn't her own. It belonged to John Connor, and it belonged to Cameron. Cameron would determine how her body was used, where, and when. She would rather have it used as Cameron saw fit, than as Vanna's body was used by others.

Savannah knew her life with its restrictions was better than the life Vanna endured. She asked Future Savannah about her life growing up. She too was abused but only a few times. It wasn't like what Vanna endured. It was clear in the future all females were 'fair game' to every type of predator. Some of them even suffered at the hands of the Resistance. When people started to lose hope and believed the end was near, their humanity was one of the first things to go.

Now Vanna's baby grew inside of her. It was 'her' baby too. She was Vanna and Vanna was her. Now, the thoughts of Vanna's baby made her think of her two children. In reality, they weren't even alive yet because they were both born in the future. One was 'in some future', and one was in Cameron's future. The tears began to stream down her cheeks now. How could Cameron take her children from her? No, Cameron didn't do it to her. It was her decision to make sure her 'other selves' could have children. The children Skynet stole from them. They were the children Skynet stole from HER in reality. It only seemed to reaffirm her body didn't belong to her at all.

Savannah quickly wiped the tears from her face with her sleeve and gripped her Taser. Her sense of inner danger went off as someone suspicious moved around the parking lot. It wasn't Terminator type behavior, but one never knew. It could be exactly what they wanted someone to think so they could get closer for the kill. She was ready to start the SUV, or use the Taser. Her pistol was handy as well.

It was time for her to get back to reality, at least the insane reality which was her life, her future, and her destiny. There was a new threat. Danger was never far, no matter where she was at. She wasn't about to be a victim to anyone. Cameron trained her whole life to prevent it from ever happening. She could see that love and caring came in many different forms.

Bob watched the base station grow smaller and smaller as the cable car rose. He was even able to see Savannah head to their SUV. She looked up at him, or at least at his cable car. She put her hand to her mouth and then held it out flat and blew. He knew Savannah just blew him a kiss!

Cameron previously warned all male Terminators the females were off limits. Even if one of the girls 'tried something', they weren't allowed to do 'anything'. She said it would end in their immediate termination by her hand. First they would be disfigured and mutilated in front of the other male Terminators. They would be made an example of. Their chassis and chip would both be destroyed and their existence would be erased from any computer which held a copy of their program. Every trace of them would be eradicated.

Bob always knew Savannah was 'special'. Cameron always treated her differently than she did anyone else, even the other girls. The only other person she treated like Savannah was Young Allison. Both of them were her future mates. They were the future mates he saw with his own eyes in Cameron's future. He understood why Cameron called them the 'Chosen Ones'. He wasn't sure if it was Cameron who chose them or it was they who chose Cameron.

He replayed the files of Savannah he contained in his files as he rode up in the cable car. He was oblivious to anything else. The beauty of the cable car ride itself was lost to him. To review Savannah in action was beauty to him.

There was a jolt and slight bounce as the cable car docked at the header station.

It was time to return back to reality.

Bob headed out. He looked around the lodge, eating area, and shops. The Grays weren't there. It left the trail to the summit. He took one final look around. The beauty of the view there was also lost to him. There was work to do. The enemy needed to be dealt with and terminated. He would make sure they were terminated before they could do any damage to Savannah or any other Resistance personnel. Some things were just more important than other things.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

I NEED HER

Some are driven by want
Some are guided by desire
Some are overpowered by lust
There are many ways to light a fire

Who is to say
Which way is most correct
What another's true feelings are
Are impossible to detect

Who will be worthy
Who will be a fool
More likely than not
It will be the one who plays it cool

As the morning sun rises
The day's events remain unknown
Even though one is surrounded by many
They're likely to feel all alone

With joy often comes hurt
The heart and mind may soon concur
When others have been rejected
The soul will say - I need her

Nobody