Chapter 992

Good Suggestion

The assault on the compound was on. John Henry cut the power and blocked all communications except their own. They didn't want the Skynet forces to call for reinforcements, or have HK drones sent from some other location. They didn't want what they suspected was the Syndicate force to call for reinforcements or contact their other vehicles at the old supermarket and the cryogenics lab. They wanted to keep everyone in the dark. As long as they were in the dark, no one knew they were under attack.

Cameron received the report there were two vehicles which entered the compound from the front. It was what she figured on at this point.

Cam's team and Cammy's team were to enter from the rear of the compound at the same time the doors were blown open which led into the building over the railroad siding. They wanted the doors to the railroad siding out of the way for a very specific reason.

CamNet informed Cameron her team was going to have close drone support as they entered the building. There would be three drones entering with them. Two would precede them in and one would follow them in. They would only be feet apart as it occurred. It would be very loud.

Cameron was a little surprised they would have close drone support again like they did in the desert warehouse near Las Vegas. The difference at the current location was the drones would be restricted to the area with a box cars would normally be spotted. It was because of clearance issues elsewhere in the building.

She could see Young Allison's handiwork was all over the operation. CamNet sent her some of the communications between Anna and Young Allison. She was very pleased to see the 'killer instinct' in Young Allison. It was what she wanted her to have. It was clear Young Allison was going to hit and hit hard.

Cameron was a little worried as to what the Metal girls and her would face once they actually entered the building. The three drones would take on any HK Tracks if they were in there. The drones wouldn't be able to move much inside the building. They would be restricted to the area where the boxcars were normally spotted. Right now she was worried about Savannah.

Seconds ago:

The Grays in the building heard an explosion out in the front somewhere. They were unable to contact the guard. The confusion started a general panic.

One of the Grays cracked a door open and saw two vehicles enter the loading area after they knocked down the gate. It was clear they were under attack.

The alarm was sounded.

A quick check of the security system showed the only threat to be from the front. They didn't know it was by design. They would concentrate all their efforts to the front. They didn't know the Resistance was about to make a 'rear entry'. A 'rear entry' always got someone's attention, especially when they weren't expecting it.

The Grays lost all power one second later. They were in the dark in more ways than one. The level of confusion and uncertainty increased exponentially for them.

Cameron didn't want Savannah in the fight with two different groups attacking each other with the Resistance in the middle of it. The drones right on top of them in the darkness inside of the building would only compound the situation for Savannah.

"There may be heavy fighting." Cameron said. "I know you want to go with me. I have plenty of assistance this time. I need you to do an important function in the back. We need to keep the back door open. Please, Savannah, keep it open for us."

Savannah knew she would be at a disadvantage if they faced HK Tracks again. The building would be in near total darkness with only emergency lighting, punctuated by the flashes of gunfire. The noise level would probably be extreme with three drones inside the building and contained to one area. Cameron would have a force of Terminators with her. She didn't want Cameron to stress out over her.

"OK, Cameron." Savannah said. "You're going to have close drone support. Please use caution. The safety of the team comes first. You must take no unnecessary chances."

Cameron didn't want to get shot up. She was going to be in combat and it was always a risk. Once they were committed to the attack on the building, it needed to be completed. She would have a force of Terminators to back her up this time. With three drones providing close fire support, she hoped the risk would be minimal to the team and to her. There was one goal she planned to achieve. It was to get the female out if she was still alive.

"I won't, Savannah." Cameron said. "I'll only get extreme if I need to save the female. I know you understand this. If I can help her, I will."

Savannah understood what was important to Cameron. She wanted to destroy the enemy, but she also wanted to try to help the female if it was possible. She could only urge Cameron to use caution.

"I do, Cameron." Savannah said. "Be mindful of everything. Take care of the Metal girls and the drones."

Cameron made sure Savannah was between the two containers where they were earlier when she signaled the initiation of the strike.

Gail and Cameron waited with Savannah. They both used their chassis to shield her from any shrapnel there would be when the doors over the rail siding were blown open.

They heard the drones approach. There was minigun fire several times before they saw a missile streak from the sky and blow the doors open over the railroad siding.

They could hear explosions in the front of the building at the same time and gunfire. There was a lot of gunfire.

"Let's Go." Cameron said to Gail.

Cameron and Gail started toward the opening in the rear of the building. Both of the doors were blown off and laying on the tracks inside the building.

Cameron heard their drones approach the building very low. They were right on top of them. Cam and Cammy came crashing through the gate over the railroad tracks. It burst open as the lead SUV impacted it.

The first two drones entered the building sideways as they searched for threats. This way they were already turned in the direction of potential combat as they sought out targets. Cameron and Gail were right behind the first two. The third drone followed them in. The noise level was very intense.

Savannah watched it all. She heard minigun fire inside the building almost immediately as the first drone entered. It sounded like all three of the drones opened fire as they entered. She knew there would be cover for Cameron and Gail behind the cement loading dock. It would be raised from the level of the railroad tracks so the boxcars could be unloaded. She hoped Cameron and Gail used the dock for cover. She doubted they would. They would probably immediately start on their way through the building in search of the girl.

Cam's SUV drove right up to the shattered door. They exited the SUV and followed the third drone inside. Cam, Sheila and Ally all headed inside after it.

Cammy's SUV stopped right in front of where Savannah was at.

Cammy was met by Savannah as she exited the SUV. Holly and Hanna were out as well.

Savannah quickly went over what their objective was.

"We need to watch the side of the building and anything from the front." Savannah said.

Cammy already knew the layout of the area from the latest drone images. She didn't think it would be a problem.

"We'll watch the side, the back, and the way we came in." Cammy said.

Savannah wanted more help for the two teams already inside. She didn't think three Terminators were necessary for the task at hand. She knew they would have drone support if they needed it. She wanted Cameron's group to have more help.

"I can do it with one of you." Savannah said. "The other two need to help the two teams inside. The action is inside of the building. It's not out here. There are drones overhead if any of it does spill out. We need to get out of here as soon as possible."

Savannah was aware the assault could draw unwanted attention.

Holly noticed Savannah didn't say which one of them would stay with her, and which two would enter the building. She understood Savannah didn't want to show any favoritism. She knew Cammy would rather be with Savannah so she made the choice for Hanna and herself.

"You stay with Savannah." Holly said to Cammy. "Hanna and I are on it. We'll back up the teams inside."

They heard more minigun fire inside the building and out in the front. There were no more explosions. It seemed like a good thing.

Holly and Hanna entered the building through the boxcar entrance.

Cammy was very pleased she was allowed to remain with Savannah. She would make sure she watched over her and protected Savannah above everything else. She figured if the Metal girls got into a scrape inside, they could fight their way out.

Savannah was pleased at how Holly made the decision to enter the building with Hanna. She knew Cammy wanted to be with her. She wanted Cammy to focus on the task at hand and not worry about her specifically. She wondered if maybe she should have kept Holly or Hanna and sent Cammy with the other one. The mission came before her.

"Cammy, I'm not your primary concern. Keeping the back door open so the girls can get out from inside is what's most important."

Seconds ago:

John and John Henry watched the drone footage of the compound. They were able to watch all the feeds from all the drones. There was a lot going on. It all seemed to happen at the same time.

They saw the two hostile vehicles knock down the gate in the front and enter the compound. They passed the guard booth with no challenge or opposition. It was because a sniper already killed the front gate guard. They advanced towards the structure. John was unsure why John Henry hadn't engaged them yet. He wanted to stop them before they went too far. He was concerned about the Metal girls and Savannah.

"Why aren't you lighting them up?" John asked. "You can stop them where they are now."

John Henry was given specific instructions by CamNet on what to do. The drones were to wait until the vehicles actually stopped. They should be well inside of the compound and close to the building then.

"I've been directed to wait until the occupants start to get out. They will be susceptible to more shrapnel damage as well. We don't know if the sedans are armored." John Henry said. "The goal is to get the people inside as close to the front of the building as possible, or even outside of the structure to engage the assaulting force. It will give our troops entering from the rear less return fire. It's the best plan."

John looked at a screen covering the back of the building. Cameron and her team were out of sight and behind cover.

The front showed the two vehicles stop and the doors on them open. There was nothing but whiteness as two missiles struck simultaneously.

John watched as two drones dropped down in the front of the building. They fired across the loading dock from both sides crossing paths of minigun fire, first from right to left and then left to right about one second apart. Anything on the dock was shredded. It was most of the Grays who came out to meet the assault in the front from the two sedans.

The footage from the back at the same time showed the doors being blown off and two drones enter into the building sideways. Cameron and Gail followed the first two drones inside and the third drone followed them inside. Cam's SUV pulled up and the three girls from the SUV followed the third drone in. Holly and Hanna followed a few seconds later. He saw Cammy remained with Savannah.

John was amazed at how swift and timed everything was. There wasn't one wasted second on any of the operations he just witnessed. He was worried about the three explosions and the minigun fire. It didn't appear to him there was much shooting from the occupants of the building towards the two sedans before they both exploded. Everything on the dock was shredded at almost the same time.

He was concerned about the noise created from the explosions so far. There was a lot of gunfire as well. From what he could tell almost all of it was generated by their drones. He didn't think any of the gunfire by the Grays, directed towards the two sedans amounted to very much before the drones mowed them all down. There was a lot occurring inside the compound. There could be more on the way.

"We need to keep track of what's happening around the area." John said.

So far the only other target John Henry was able to identify was another sedan which approached the rear of the building earlier. It appeared to be headed for the truck entrance at the rear of the building. It never made it.

"One target was neutralized by minigun fire in the back before Cam and Cammy arrived." John Henry said. "It was a third vehicle as it advanced on the rear of the building. It was the attackers blocking force."

John noted the first two drones headed for the interior of the building engaged the sedan at the rear with minigun fire. If the vehicle was armored, the third drone would have hit it with a missile. The missile was unnecessary. The third drone continued on past it.

"I saw two drones hit it with minigun fire as they headed for the inside of the building." John said. I don't think the occupants had time to register exactly what happened to them. Were you able to determine where the attacking force came from?"

John Henry was able to identify the vehicles emerged from a nearby building. They obviously were waiting there. It was clear there was some planning involved in the assault on the port compound. As they suspected, the two black sedans at the old supermarket and cryogenics lab weren't a coincidence.

"The unknown hostile force was on station and in hiding before the truck arrived and our drones took over surveillance." John Henry said. "The hostiles were waiting for them. It was evident the attack was planned earlier to be carried out at all of the locations."

"Since they didn't strike right away, they must have been waiting for something else too." John said. "Seeing Cameron's team forced them to act early. When the drone took out the sniper with a missile, they needed to act or all surprise would be lost instead of just most of it. I bet there's an additional threat on the way. Check for any other trucks or vehicles in the vicinity which look like they're headed towards the port compound."

The prospect of some other threat about to arrive didn't leave John with a good feeling. He wanted the teams in and out. He wanted the Grays terminated along with the attacking force. If the girl and her father were still alive and could be rescued, it would be a bonus. With all the activity it seemed doubtful. There were a lot of bullets pumped through the loading dock area of the building in a very short time.

One thing was for certain. The force which came to attack the port compound was neutralized. What else occurred inside the building was yet to be determined.

Savannah watched everything as it happened. Cammy filled her in on a hostile vehicle which was in front of them headed for the rear of the compound which was hit with minigun fire. They passed the flaming wreck on the way in.

She was a little concerned by Cammy's report. She wasn't sure all the players were on the field yet. When the sniper took a shot at them, it appeared to trigger the events ahead of schedule, whatever the schedule was. The drone strike on the sniper forced the three sedans to make their move. They lost much of the element of surprise they would have possessed if they could have made their move without the explosion first. The enemy vehicles which were ready needed to act to prevent the building from becoming fortified. A more unified attack may have been divided into waves.

"It may mean there are more to follow." Savannah said. "They could have reserves or backup. They may have been waiting for something else to occur first. We don't know what it was when the sniper took a shot at us."

Cammy was very upset with what almost occurred. She watched as Cameron and Savannah went down a second before the drone missile struck the building the sniper was in. It was very traumatic for her to watch and think Savannah was down. She didn't know how close the bullet intended for Cameron passed to Savannah.

She decided she would take on any additional threat from the rear or side by herself if it arose. She wanted Savannah to maintain some cover if it occurred. If there was an active threat, there was still the chance there could be other threats as well which might not be as active. There could be stragglers or survivors from inside the building who attempted to flee. It would be the Grays who chose not to fight, but to run instead. There could also be an attempt by father and daughter to escape in the confusion, if they were even still alive.

"I'll engage them." Cammy said. "You'll watch the side and back of the building. We don't know who else may make it out of the building."

Savannah was worried about Cameron and all of the team. It was clear the battle inside the building wasn't over, even if the battle in the front seemed to be. The battle was over in seconds.

She tried to look at some of the body cam footage of the Metal girls inside of the building. Most of what she could see was just darkness. There were a few flashes of light here and there and not much else. The Metal girls all relied on their different Terminator vision spectrum's to see in the dark. It put them at a distinct advantage over the Grays inside of the building. They still didn't know if there were any Terminators inside of the building. If there were any Terminators, they didn't know what type of Terminator they were. There was the possibility if there was a Terminator there it could be a Liquid Metal Terminator. It was a sobering thought.

Savannah knew the Resistance Terminators inside carried acid rounds, as well as Thermite grenades. She knew they would be able to severely damage the Liquid Metal Terminator if it attempted to engage them. If the Resistance team couldn't destroy it, they hoped they could prevent its further attack on them. They didn't think the Liquid Metal Terminator would run, but it might fall back and attempt to attack again.

There were currently seven Metal girls inside of the building. They needed to suppress any threat, terminate any Skynet survivors, and search for the father and daughter captives. A standard Skynet Terminator wouldn't pose much of a threat to them. It was only a Liquid Metal Terminator which could become a major problem. It caused her a lot of worry and she looked at the dark body cam images. They didn't show her anything.

Seconds ago:

Cameron followed the second drone in. Both of the drones which preceded her inside the building engaged targets immediately. Their miniguns barked to life as they entered. There was limited clearance so the drones would need to provide direct fire support from where the boxcars would normally be spotted or parked. The third drone was behind them. It hadn't fired yet.

Gail and Cameron found some limited cover as they entered the building because of the loading dock for the rail cars. Neither one of them used it since there was no gun fire directed at them. It was doubtful they would have used it anyway even if there was. They would want to engage the target and terminate it.

Cameron moved up to the level of the workroom floor. It was at a higher elevation so it would be even with the boxcar doors. She hadn't spotted any HK equipment yet. It was a good sign. She only saw several dead Grays. Cam, Sheila, and Ally all joined Gail and her.

The three drones covered the entire inside of the building from the boxcar loading area. The noise was very loud in the confined space.

There was a lull in the firing. Most of the targets were already neutralized. There was some movement on the far side.

With the minigun fire across the front of the building, there were more than a few stray bullets which tore through the interior. Most of the Grays who were still alive were wounded by the time the three drones inside the building could engage them.

Cameron wanted to keep things moving. Gail and her would proceed through the building towards the far side. She wanted to make sure all the threats in the front were neutralized. They all possessed the files of the blueprints for the building and of the general layout. From what she could see, most of it was accurate. There were a few changes.

"Cam, have your team sweep the front, Gail and I are going to take the far side." Cameron said. "Look for the female. I think most of the Grays went towards the front loading dock area when they spotted the sedans coming. If they have a Terminator with them, it's most likely where he will be. Most likely anyone you encounter will already be wounded. Some individuals might try to play possum. Don't take any chances. You don't want them to open up on you from the rear once you pass."

Cam glanced at her team. They all knew the drill.

"We're on it." Cam said. "We'll shoot first and ask questions later."

Cam and her team took off.

Cameron and Gail detected some noise behind them. They were already informed they would receive some additional assistance from the outside.

Hanna and Holly arrived seconds later.

Cameron would have preferred if they would have remained outside with Savannah and Cammy. She knew they were directed by Savannah to assist Gail and her. She would try to make maximum use of the additional help.

"I want you two to head to the office area." Cameron said. "I believe you will encounter active Skynet targets as you approach the area. Don't take any chances. Look for the female."

Holly and Hanna hoped to find the female as well.

"I think anyone who retreated from the loading dock area would have gone back towards the office area where there's more of the building to protect them." Hanna said. "We will expect the worst and hope for the best."

Holly wasn't sure if there was any 'best'.

"Maybe we'll spot both of the hostages." Holly said. "At least we know what they both look like now."

Hanna and Holly headed off.

The three drones were still in back of them searching for targets. It didn't seem like they were all needed any longer.

Cameron released one drone to go back outside. The last drone to enter the building left.

Savannah tried to listen to any of the conversations from inside through the com system. She wasn't able to pick up much. She continued to look for signs of any intruders, or escapees. She could hear the drone noise get a little louder. She watched as one drone exited the building. It flew low and slowly toward her. It took up a position above her off to the side and made a thorough sweep of the area. It was as if the drone made a personal sweep and checked for any threats to her. She saw the markings Young Allison and her placed on the side of it. It said 'Coltan Overcast'. It made sense as soon as she saw the markings. The drone showed its appreciation for their personal work on it before.

The drone turned towards her. She blew it a kiss. Young Allison originally wanted to name the drone 'Pink Butterfly'. She picked the name 'Coltan Overcast' instead. She thought 'Pink Butterfly' was too suggestive of her anatomy. She was pretty sure it's why Young Allison picked the name for her drone. She figured Young Allison spied on Hanna and her mother, as well as Vanna and Allison, enough to know what she looked like in certain areas. She knew exactly what Young Allison looked like everywhere because of all the cyborgs who shared her DNA, along with Allison, Duplicate Allison, and Future Allison. The drone she named for Young Allison was marked 'Cherry Bomb' on the side. Somehow it seemed like an appropriate name for Young Allison. If there was ever someone who wanted to get 'busted', it was Young Allison.

Cammy watched the drone approach them and silently communicate with Savannah. She watched Savannah blow the drone a kiss. She actually felt a little jealous. She figured she could still offer Savannah a little more than the drone could in an intimate situation.

The drone wagged back and forth and flew once around the outside of the building before it climbed back up to altitude and flew away. It was now on patrol around the area as it searched for any additional threats which might approach the compound.

John Henry told Cammy and Savannah there was nothing approaching their position from any side, at least not yet.

There was still a little concern as to what the attacking force was actually waiting for. They didn't know if it was a truck with some kind of a shipment, or perhaps even a specific vehicle. If it was a specific vehicle, it would more than likely be a specific person who was driving it. Was there another group who was going to attack the port facility? Maybe the group with the sedans wanted to wait for the battle to occur in front of them, and then mop up and finish off everyone who survived. If it was the Syndicate, did they really think they were going to find their money? Their actions must be more about retribution, than it was in locating the money.

The money was long gone. The money 'The Enforcer' took was buried under tons of earth and rock. The money the metal girls took was being distributed to different charitable organizations, especially those which dealt with abuse directed at females or children.

Young Allison and Anna watched the operation unfold. It all seemed to happen as it was planned. It was for the external part of the operation. The inside part was still to be determined.

"The plan you formulated with CamNet, and was finalized by Cameron, has progressed smoothly so far." Anna said. "There hasn't been a single problem."

Young Allison didn't want to get too overconfident. It was only the initial stage of the operation. They still needed to clear the interior of the building and see if they could find the female and her father.

"It's still early." Young Allison said. "It's been less than a minute since the first shot was fired."

Anna wanted to look at the positive side. As far as their troops went, there hadn't been any damage.

"There's been no return fire at our troops or drones." Anna said.

Young Allison was pleased by it. They still hadn't cleared the interior. She was bothered by the fact the force which came to attack the port compound was already in place and hidden.

"I think the team who assaulted the compound was waiting for something else." Young Allison said. "Cameron's team being spotted made them act early."

CamNet played almost the same conversation from the Command Center with John and John Henry for her.

"John has come to the same conclusion." Anna said.

Young Allison was glad they were in agreement over the issue. There was the implication as to whatever it was, was still out there. They didn't have a clue what it was. They were still another problem to deal with. Actually, there were two problems.

"I don't think there's any other way to look at it. They were waiting for something specific." Young Allison said. "We still need to deal with the two black sedans from the old supermarket and lab. Maybe they were waiting for confirmation about whatever they were supposed to do."

Anna hadn't noted anything different with those two vehicles. They were cut off from communicating with anyone currently.

"Their communications were blocked as you requested at the start of the battle at the port." Anna said.

Young Allison already worked out what she wanted done in regards to the two black sedans. She also wanted to cover their activity at the port facility. She wanted to use an angle they used before. Because of the low flying drones around the port facility, she wanted to cover all the bases.

"I want our previous plan enacted dealing with the black sedans." Young Allison said. "It's what supercomputer AI is for. As for the port, make sure there's follow up on the backdated permits for the 'sci-fi movie' angle. If anybody actually checks, they'll find out everything was all 'movie props'."

Young Allison wanted to cover as much of their tracks as she could if anything arose later on about any of the activity which occurred.

John was a little worried as to what any feedback from anyone in the neighborhood of the port facility would be.

"Have there been very many frantic calls yet?" John asked.

John Henry felt he was on top of everything.

"All 911 calls are being suppressed. There actually haven't been too many. I've put into all the systems there's a science fiction action movie being filmed at the location we're involved with." John Henry said. "Everything is backdated for three months ago. It will seem the scenes for the 'movie' were planned quite a while ago. Anyone who wasn't informed, which is actually everyone, will just think it was another bureaucratic screw up."

John hadn't thought about the ploy for this endeavor. They used the science fiction movie angle previously. He thought it was a good cover. Who would ever believe any of what actually occurred was real? His mother tried to tell the truth years ago. All it bought her was a stay in a mental institution. People would believe it was 'make believe' before they would believe the truth. They were actually more likely to believe in aliens before they would believe in robots from the future and time travel.

"It's good thinking." John said. "It will buy us time and help cover our tracks." John said.

John Henry thought it was a good suggestion by CamNet. He was pretty sure where the current employee actually originated from. It seemed a lot of good ideas came out of the Young bunker.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

Good Suggestion

Some people are impulsive
They never think twice
They never listen to others
Even when it's good advice

They bull their way through life
They step on who they please
They don't care about others
They never try to appease

Details drive them crazy
They don't care what others say
Things need to be their way
Or it's the highway

They lack much stamina
They buckle and fold easy
Everything that they touch
Is a little creepy and sleazy

They're driven by aggression
They're haunted by depression
They think the answer is a question
They can't recognize a good suggestion

Nobody