Chapter 676

Don't Ever Look Back

Savannah felt helpless as she watched Cameron struggle to keep her grip on the cable and not fall off into the canyon below. She wondered if they could do anything with the helicopter to help Cameron.

"Can we get closer?" Savannah asked.

Ally knew she could get closer, but it would most certainly create a bigger problem for Cameron.

"I can't get too close to her or the 'rotor wash' will knock her off." Ally said.

Cammy could see how distressed Savannah was as she watched Cameron struggle to stay on the cable and not fall to her doom. She wanted to reassure Savannah, but maybe she wanted to reassure herself as well.

"She'll make it, Savannah." Cammy said.

Sheila received a plan from the Command Center as to what their next course of action should be.

"As soon as she does, we need to get the team down to Gail and Jesse." Sheila said. "We need to get ready for the next phase."

Savannah knew the next phase meant intercepting whatever Skynet operatives were on the cable car. She wondered how much of what was happening up on the cable would be visible or known by the occupants of the cable car.

"Does the 'Metal Bitch' know Cameron is there?" Savannah asked.

Ally already thought about it. If the 'Metal Bitch' chose to come out of the top of the cable car, she could try to knock Cameron off the cable, or prevent her getting onto the top of the cable car herself. She would surely be knocked off at the next suspension tower. Either way it looked like Cameron was in a bad spot currently.

"I think it's more than likely." Ally said. "She may come out to fight Cameron."

Savannah knew Cameron was very vulnerable right now.

"It sounds worse." Savannah said.

Sheila didn't think the 'Metal Bitch' would hesitate to kill everyone inside the cable car itself, and try to shoot Cameron to make her fall off the cable. If Cameron was still holding the cable when they reached the next support, it wouldn't matter. She would be knocked off and fall to her doom anyway.

"She may shoot at Cameron as well." Sheila said. "Cameron may have lost her weapons at this point."

Ally saw Cameron take a pretty severe spill when she first attempted to jump for the cable car. She could have lost a lot of things, especially when she almost slid off of the covering over the cable car station.

Savannah watched Cameron in action without weapons before. She was very formidable.

"Cameron is a weapon." Savannah said. "It's all she needs."

There was a loud 'clap' sound as all the Terminators 'high fived' each other. Cameron was their inspiration.

Savannah knew they were all concerned as well.

It was clear everyone on the helicopter rooted for Cameron. It didn't matter if they were a Terminator or not. They could all see the seriousness of the situation and the high level of danger involved with everything happening.

Bob planned to engage the 'Metal Bitch' with his M4 if she opened the top hatch on the cable car. He was ready to raise his carbine and fire in a moment's notice.

Cameron swung herself back up and grabbed the cable. She moved on top of it and now straddled it. She now sat on it. Her clothing gave her a little better grip of the greasy and icy cable. She didn't know how long it would last before it became soaked with the grease. She slid back up along the cable. She was able to move back six inches at a time. She was back over the top of the cable car. She thought about dropping down in an attempt to stand on top of it to move back quicker. She was sure the top of the cable car was probably covered with ice under the snow. It might turn out to be a more risky proposition.

She was closest to what she knew was designed to hold someone. It was the inspection basket. She made it the last few feet and climbed into the basket seat for the line attendant. She was in a semi secure position now, but still highly vulnerable if the 'Metal Bitch' came out to fight her. There was less chance of her falling now, even if she was in a gunfight. If the 'Metal Bitch' actually came out to fight her onto the roof of the cable car, she would be subject to the same icy conditions on the roof of it. She could also open the roof hatch and attempt to suspend herself with one arm as she fired at her with her other hand.

She checked her weapons. She still possessed her Taser and Glock. She was unsure where her M4 ended up at. It must have gone over the side of the header station roof and into the canyon when she slipped and fell. She was aware the 'Metal Bitch' knew someone was on the top of the cable car. By this point the 'Metal Bitch' would know the individual must be a Terminator as well.

Cameron felt some stability now and pulled her Taser out. If the hatch in the roof opened, she knew it would be the 'Metal Bitch'. She would have a pistol or MP5. She knew she could take those rounds. It may not be pretty, but they wouldn't incapacitate her. She was willing to take the gamble and those pistol rounds, if she could get a Taser shot at the 'Metal Bitch' She was pretty sure if there were any other occupants who were still alive inside the cable car itself, they would be highly distressed when she pulled the chip from the 'Metal Bitch'. Maybe she would force them to all face forward in the cable car even if she needed to do it at gunpoint while she pulled the chip from the 'Metal Bitch'. She didn't want to do any unnecessary terminations.

The helicopter could be clearly heard off to her side. Cameron looked up to the 'Huey' and gave 'a thumbs up'. She saw the copter wag its tail slightly back and forth and rapidly accelerate down the canyon to let off its Terminator troopers. She saw Savannah was with them. It gave her a sense of pride and a twinge of guilt for not informing Savannah what she went off to do. The thought of Savannah needing to attempt anything she just did, caused her left hand to produce a slight glitch impulse. There was no way she would have subjected Savannah to such abuse. She would need to answer for her transgressions later on. For a while there, she didn't think there was going to be a later on.

She saw the cable car near the center point of the trip. It meant the other cable car would be coming up. She briefly wondered if the 'Metal Bitch' would make a desperate attempt to jump from the cable car she was in, to the one going up to escape her.

Cameron remembered how it appeared the cable car going down was at a higher elevation than the cable car coming up when they passed. Technically, before they were side by side it was true. The jump to the other side would need to be accomplished from the roof of the cable car. If someone were to jump from the side door, they would need to crash through the front window or door of the cable car. they wouldn't be able to get to the roof. It was also possible they could jump and grab the cable ahead of the cable car and make their way towards it hand over hand. The risk of falling would be extreme in any of those maneuvers.

She hoped none of them would occur because she would have to make a jump for the other cable and try to work her way up hand over hand to the other cable car as it continued its uphill climb. She would be a prime target for the 'Metal Bitch' to shoot at. She tried to remain unseen when the other cable car passed them. She knew the occupants of one cable car always looked over at the other cable car as they passed. She was relieved to see there was no one in it. It meant there would be one less report to squelch. The 'Metal Bitch' stayed where she was at.

Seconds ago:

Ally saw Cameron get into some kind of seat. It was located high on the bracket assembly which connected the cable car to the cable. Cameron looked secure and gave them 'a thumbs up'. She moved the tail back and forth and firewalled it. She wanted to make the rendezvous with Gail and Jesse so they could get a team up to the base station. She didn't want to land in the parking lot right below the base station because it would attract a crowd. There would be enough people who would witness armed individuals getting out of the helicopter. It was bound to cause panic. They worked out a better solution.

Sheila watched as Ally flew past the base station. She still kept off to the side. She knew if they set down in the parking lot, it would cause a lot of 'lookiloos'. It would bring unwanted attention. They continued down the canyon.

Ally saw the white van Gail and Jesse were in. It was about to make the turn off the main road to head up the canyon road. She decided to take the easiest course of action and what would kick up the least amount of debris as the helicopter touched down.

"Gail, we'll set down just up the road." Ally said.

Gail already had a clear visual of the Iroquois as it approached.

"We see you coming." Gail said. "It was quite a running commentary you provided."

Ally tried to make light of the situation.

"I felt like a sports announcer." Ally said. "It wasn't pleasant to watch."

They all knew it would have been a lot less pleasant to experience like Cameron needed to do.

Sheila looked back at one of Cameron's Terminators. She wanted to make sure they would have some extra firepower. They still didn't know how many individuals were in the cable car who were connected with Skynet.

"Pete, take a 'pig' and go with them." Sheila said.

Cameron's Terminator nodded.

"Affirmative…." Pete said.

Sheila rolled her eyes slightly and returned her attention forward.

Cameron's Terminator was able to get everything ready in a few seconds with the assistance of Bob.

Ally brought the UH-1 down into a low hover without even landing. The Terminator troopers bailed out along with Savannah. Gail pulled the van up alongside them. She made sure to stay clear of the rotor. The UH-1 was gone in seconds. Jesse slid the side door of the van open. They all piled in the cargo space of the van.

They were a little surprised to see the female from the top of the mountain inside the van. They realized Gail and Jesse didn't have time to let her off, fix her up with transportation, and still make the rendezvous without any further delay.

Jesse wanted to give them all a brief explanation. She believed they could accomplish several things with their current location.

"This is Candy. You all saw her before." Jesse said. "We have a car for her in the parking lot. I told her not to open the trunk and dump it in the next state."

Savannah wanted to help her too.

"I have something to give her as well." Savannah said. "It's in the SUV I came up in."

Cammy was sure she knew what Savannah wanted to do.

"We have three SUVs in the various parking lots, plus Cameron's." Cammy said.

Savannah smiled at her and nodded.

Jesse looked back at the full load of Terminators.

"We have plenty of drivers now." Jesse said.

Savannah wanted everyone to keep their eye on the ball. The most important person was yet to arrive.

"We'll have one more driver when Cameron gets here." Savannah said.

Cammy smiled at Savannah to reassure her.

"She will." Cammy said.

Candy noticed Cameron and Cammy looked identical.

"Is she your sister?" Candy asked. "I mean the girl who was in charge?"

Cammy was very glad Cameron survived her unconventional method for boarding the cable car. She was proud to be her clone at this particular point. It wasn't often the case. There were some of Cameron's actions she wished to disassociate herself with.

"Yes." Cammy said. "We're twins. We're identical. We're the same."

Cammy looked at Savannah when she said it and smiled.

Savannah smiled back at her. She reached over and gave Cammy's hand a gentle squeeze. She knew there were a few differences between them, but there weren't many.

The wind seemed to have subsided some as the cable car continued its journey down. The base station grew closer and larger every second as the cable car descended.

Cameron observed they neared the last support tower. She wondered if the 'Metal Bitch' would jump over to it, and try to go down by using it as a 'ladder'. She would be able to avoid the base station if she chose the unconventional method to exit.

She moved down from the basket seat and clung to the support pylon in case she needed to jump to the tower as they passed. She also needed to cover the roof hatch in case the 'Metal Bitch' decided to open it and take a few shots at her before she parted.

Nothing happened. The next trick would be for the 'Metal Bitch' to jump out before the cable car docked and go around the outside of the building. She was pretty sure the 'Metal Bitch' wasn't going to go through the base station exit. Cameron knew all the communications were cut so the 'Metal Bitch' wouldn't have been able to contact anyone. She would have to assume whoever was after her probably had someone waiting for her in the base station, or right outside of it.

Cameron crouched low now. She stood on the roof of the cable car itself. It was slippery with ice and snow. She figured if she would have been able to actually make the jump, she would have impacted the roof and ended up sliding off the top of the cable car anyway, unless she would have been able to grab the bracket which attached the support to the top of the roof of the cable car. She tried to keep her body behind the support pylon so she wouldn't be spotted easily. To be spotted by some workers where she was at currently, wasn't something she needed.

She wondered how many red flags she already sent up with her recent activity. It was probably more than a few. She caused damage at the header station when she slipped and fell. She would rely on John Henry and CamNet to deal with any of it. She thought they could always report the damage as a large icicle forming on the edge of the header station roof and falling down onto the fence which caused it to buckle and break. She wasn't really sure how else it would be explained. She knew it must have made a lot of noise when it happened. She figured it would take a few minutes for someone to go out and try to figure out where the noise came from. She should have already been on top of the cable car, even if she was in front of it by the time they did. She doubted she would have been spotted.

Cameron wasn't looking for a shootout in a crowded place. She could see the base station was mostly empty. The shops were closed as well. It was near the end of the day for the workers and few seemed to pay any attention. Everyone was ready to go home so they watched the clock.

The closer they came to the base station, the more likely it was the 'Metal Bitch' would make her move. She was sure she would probably pry the doors open and jump for it. She was ready to jump after her when she did.

Even though it would be more dramatic if the 'Metal Bitch' bailed out of the cable car before docked, it would be better for the patrons inside the base station if she did. Cameron was sure there would be gunfire at that point.

Gail ran the captured van hard up the hill to the parking lot area. There were several. Some of the curves were very dangerous but she kept it safe, even if it didn't seem sane to Savannah, Jesse, and Candy. Terminators possessed abilities humans were unable to match under any circumstances. Her biggest concern was any black ice on the pavement. She didn't think the base station was low enough to be affected by any.

They were still five minutes ahead of the cable car reaching the base station.

She stopped and let everyone collect the various SUVs except Cameron's.

They let Candy off at the car of the dead thief. He was still in the trunk. Savannah went to the SUV Bob and her arrived in and retrieved a few items. She wanted the female safe and out of there, well, safer than she was for the last few hours anyway. She didn't approve of her lifestyle, but Candy didn't deserve what happened to her either. She hoped she'd be able to do something to give her a fresh start or at least a better start. It would be up to Candy what she did after it. Cammy's scans didn't indicate she was a long term drug user. The only drugs in her system seemed to be what the Grays gave to her to make her more compliant. Those were all metabolized at this point in time.

Candy looked a little surprised at what Savannah handed her.

"Here's some money and a firearm." Savannah said. "Take the car and drive through one state without stopping and dump it in a mall. Take a train or bus and go across the country. Don't open the trunk and get rid of the car within a day, two at the most. You don't want to be caught driving it."

Savannah gave her some brief instructions on the operation of the pistol. Candy told her she carried one before.

Candy wasn't sure what the deal was with the car, but it sounded like something she didn't want to find out. She was appreciative of the money and the fact she was rescued and saved by the group of people she was currently with.

"Thank you, all of you." Candy said as she started the thief's car. "Who are you?"

Savannah heard others in her group use the term several times. She thought it was appropriate under the current circumstances.

"We're the 'Good Guys'." Savannah said. "Run as fast as you can and never look back. You have the ability to remake your life going forward from this point. Please don't squander it. There's more of the same group located in the state. Don't take the chance of running into any of them again. We'll deal with them as we find them."

With the multiple abuse over the last few days, and seeing people die, it seemed like good advice to Candy. She knew at this point she was lucky to still be alive even. She knew she was only alive because of the people there who helped her. They saved her. We could have left her to die, or killed her themselves. Instead they helped her at every turn. She believed everything the Asian female told her about her experiences.

Candy started the car and backed out. She saw the others were already gone. She drove off and down the hill in the dead thief's car. She took it easy down the twisty mountain road. She looked in the rear view mirror to see if she was being pursued, she wasn't. Maybe her nightmare was almost over.

Savannah went over a plan with Cammy and Bob. They thought it was a good one. They didn't have much time to act. Gail informed them the cable car was near the last pylon on its way down.

Cameron knew her team would be ready for her and the 'Metal Bitch'. She lost her com, both of them, with her recent athletic activity and semi circus stunts. The base station loomed ahead.

The cable car slowed as it neared the base station. Cameron was ready to jump down. Much as she suspected, the door of the cable car was forced open and the 'Metal Bitch' jumped out and down fifteen feet to the ground. She landed and slipped on the icy ground but was instantly up and running. It appeared she planned to evade instead of fight.

Cameron jumped down in pursuit. She carried her Glock in one hand and her Taser in the other.

The 'Metal Bitch' went around the side of the building as Cameron thought she would. She also anticipated the next move the 'Metal Bitch' would attempt. She quickly slipped off her jacket as she ran. She slowed and tossed the jacket in front of her as she reached the corner. She heard a silenced MP5 cough out its rounds and the jacket was shredded.

The 'Metal Bitch' tried to ambush her.

Cameron came around the corner and the 'Metal Bitch' was about ready to move to the front side of the building. The 'Metal Bitch' looked back at her to see what she looked like. She knew the 'Metal Bitch' wanted to scan her to try and hunt her down later if she eluded her. She picked up the pace. It wasn't going to happen.

The 'Metal Bitch' looked back at her pursuer. She imprinted what the 'Metal Whore' looked like who pursued her. The 'Metal Whore' was now tagged on her chip. She thought she would hunt her down later. The 'Metal Bitch' thought she might even take the chassis for herself once she hunted her down and deactivated her. She could see the sheath was very attractive.

If nothing else, she would reprogram her and turn her over to the Grays to be a 'Metal Whore' for all of eternity. She smiled to herself at the thought of watching the Grays do to the 'Metal Whore', what she watched them do to the disgusting human females, especially the last one. She was really disappointed she didn't get to cut her up like she did with the other human females. She really thought there was way too much going on down there anyway. All the extra parts were redundant and served no purpose in reproduction. She wondered if maybe she was actually a little jealous of the other females because she believed they were all more attractive than she was, even if they were street trash.

The 'Metal Bitch' saw two SUVs parked on each side of the building. She saw one of their white vans as it quickly approached. Good, they sent someone for her. It looked like reinforcements would be waiting for her. The white van stopped in front of her, but went up a ways. She was unable to see who the driver was because they overshot. She would be there in seconds. The side door slid open. She headed for it to jump in. She knew she was home free.

She decided to silently 'communicate' with the 'Metal Whore' who pursued her. She was pleased she outsmarted and outmaneuvered her. She smiled again at the thought of turning her reprogram chassis over to the Grays and watch as they abused it.

The 'Metal Bitch' looked back at Cameron and smiled as she flipped her off. Maybe she would use some acid on her face and other female attributes so the Grays wouldn't be too infatuated with her. She liked the thought of her new idea. She would use it on the next batch of human females too. She knew they would really scream.

Cameron pointed behind the 'Metal Bitch'. The 'Metal Bitch' turned around and saw the SAME 'Metal Whore' who was chasing her, was now standing in front of her and fired a Taser. She tried to dodge it, but three of the charged barbs hit her. There was a look of astonishment on her face as she went down.

Cammy moved off to the side as the momentum of the 'Metal Bitch' carried her forward as she collapsed. She impacted with a thud and was sprawled half in the open door of the van.

Cameron arrived a few seconds behind her. She reached down and shoved the 'Metal Bitch' the rest of the way in as she entered the van. Cammy followed her inside and closed the door behind them. Gail drove off. She noted one of her Terminators with an M60 was waiting as well, just in case….

"It's time to go home." Cameron said as she pulled her knife out.

Cameron resisted the urge to slice the cheek open on the 'Metal Bitch'. Instead she just pulled her chip out and deactivated her.

"You lose." Cameron said. "I win, again."

Cameron was pleased she always won. It was mainly because the game was never over until she did win. She did have to admit the last fifteen minutes were rather harrowing. More than a few times it was touch and go. She didn't 'go' and she prevailed.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

Don't Ever Look Back

Each day through life's journey
Seems to be filled with endless flak
Maybe it all makes sense
If the journey is viewed as an attack

It feels as if every step forward
Ends up moving two steps back
It really makes one question
Each and every setback

When one thinks they've broken free
They wonder if they're on the right track
Maybe where they're currently headed
Is just the result of a hijack

With the daily roll of the dice
Will they ever be cut some slack
Can anyone ever win a game
That's always out of whack

It's time to move forward
And no longer backtrack
Follow what the heart demands
Don't ever look back

Nobody