Chapter 1632

Time Didn't Wait

Derek was more than a little worried. The person down on the ground didn't appear to be in very good condition. He looked at Jim.

"Will any type of medical attention help them?" Derek asked.

Jim looked over the individual and did a limited scan on them.

"They appear to have suffered a severe drug overdose." Jim said.

Derek looked at the drug paraphernalia down next to where they were at.

"They took the drugs after they were freed." Derek said. "Well, the drug overdose anyway."

Jim wasn't sure it was the drugs alone.

"They appeared to be suffering from a number of ailments and abuses." Jim said. "I don't believe it was a self-termination. It's not uncommon for someone looking for a fix to take the wrong amount or type of drugs. Some of the drugs coming in from south of the border, manufactured in an Asian country, are very potent and only a small amount can kill someone. There is no type of control as to the purity or dosage of any of the illegal narcotics. Those who deal drugs, deal in death. They should all be terminated."

Derek was aware of the drug problem Jim indicated.

"You would think the government would do a little more to try to keep the poison out of society." Derek said. "I know most of it does not come across the border with the majority of individuals entering the country illegally. It happens in some of the more remote locations. Maybe we should assign a couple of our drones to patrol the border and engage any vehicle threats they see crossing into the country illegally."

Jim was aware the authorities didn't have the backbone for such preventive action to protect the citizens of the country.

"I'm sure if it happened for a couple of nights in a row, it would make the Cartels a little nervous as to what exactly was going on." Jim said. "The individual here is beyond our help, or the help of anyone else. Even if they would have survived this encounter, it is only a matter of time until they would be back in the same place again, with the same results we currently viewed."

Derek and Jim couldn't do any more to help.

They headed back towards where they left Kyle.

Kyle was a little surprised when the female suggested who they might be. He wasn't sure there was always a good connotation associated with 'Secret Agents'. It did however give them a certain level of mystery to operate behind.

"I'm not at liberty to say." Kyle said. "Our main goal now is to get you away from here."

The female looked at the van.

"Can I have this?" The female asked.

Kyle expected her to be a little more traumatized after what he witnessed and viewed when the van stopped. Her attitude was more like some of the females from the future after some of their abuse. It seemed to be very 'matter of fact'.

"Do you want some kind of medical attention?" Kyle asked.

The female put her pants back on.

"No hospitals and no cops." The female said. "This is how life is on the street sometimes. I've been through worse. It happens to all the females on the street at some point. I don't know what these losers were up to, but it didn't look good. Thank you for rescuing me."

Her attitude reminded Kyle a little too much of the Wastelands. He was a little surprised when he was contacted by Sarah through his com. It probably meant she was all over the operation. He probably wouldn't be a good thing for him.

"See if she wants to go to a shelter or to a rehab facility." Sarah said.

He didn't know Summer was the one who asked Sarah to contact him directly.

"There are other places you can be taken if you want to get off the street." Kyle said. "We can take you to one of them. You can remain anonymous. We will cover the fee for you."

The female looked through the van. She wanted to keep her independence. She didn't do well in institutionalized settings.

"I just want to take the van." The female said. "I already paid for it. I just didn't know it at the time."

Kyle could hear some movement behind him. He was relieved to see it was Jim and Derek. He turned his attention back to the female.

Bob went to where Jim and Derek were at to see what could be done with the individual there. He decided to make another circuit through the building on his way there. He still wasn't convinced there weren't any other individuals concealed within it.

He thought he may have detected the sounds of movement on the far side of the building. His scans through several different vision spectrums didn't reveal anything.

There was a faint metallic sound. He wasn't sure what it was. He continued to close in on the position. He came around the back of one of the hovels and came face to face with the intruder.

It was a black feline. The cat arched its back and hissed at him. It quickly ran off. He didn't care for the distress he seemed to cause animals. He knew it was something all the Metal girls changed with their pheromones.

Bob thought it was time to update his pheromones from the 'predator pheromones', to those animals seemed to like. He saw the visual files of the Metal girls holding the small animals in the pet store. They all seem thrilled by the experience. The animals seemed just as thrilled as well.

He heard the report Jim gave about the other individual. They appeared to be another casualty of their chosen lifestyle. Sometimes he wondered what was wrong with some of the people. When they chose not to be a part of productive society, their problems seemed to compound and end in a bad way.

He was a little intrigued with the conversation Kyle and the female conducted at the van. He found it somewhat surprising she indicated she already 'purchased' the vehicle through her actions, even when they were done against her will.

Bob made his way back towards the van.

Earlier:

Sarah and Riley headed over to where Summer worked in the Command Center.

John and John Henry quickly glanced at each other. They didn't think there'd be any problems now.

The girls followed the operation from Summer station. They saw the way things developed. They were a little surprised at the request of the female who was in the van.

Sarah found it a little hard to accept. The concept of the idea bothered her greatly.

"You would think it was something which happened to her everyday." Sarah said.

Summer was well acquainted with the lifestyle of some groups of homeless people. She followed all of Cameron's 'off the books' operations.

"It actually is for some of them." Summer said. "Cameron and Savannah have tried to help a number of females. It usually doesn't work. Once they start on drugs, it's a path most can never return from. If they do, it isn't for long."

Riley thought about some of the events of the future. She didn't want to bring them up in front of Summer.

Summer glanced over at Riley.

Riley realized Summer actually knew what all of them were.

Summer wanted to offer Sarah something which might ease her mind a little.

"You can contact Kyle directly and suggest whatever you'd like for him to do." Summer said. "It isn't a problem. It may or may not offer a solution, but at least you will be satisfied you did your part to assist."

Sarah glanced over towards John and John Henry. They seemed a little preoccupied. She didn't think she'd be intruding on anything to do so. She quickly proposed a couple of options Summer pointed out which were available. She was a little surprised when the female declined. She wanted the van.

Summer wanted to offer Sarah an explanation.

"She probably wants it to live in." Summer said. "It will give her a little more security than a few cardboard boxes, or even a tent. If someone enters one of those during the night, she needs to go along with whatever they want from her. She can at least lock the doors on the van. I'm sure she plans to earn gas money with 'Nature's Treasury'. She'll probably keep it until it breaks down and then continue to live in it until it's towed away. You need to remember there are multiple programs out there to assist homeless individuals who want to help themselves. Most of them don't want to help themselves."

Riley cringed a little at the thought.

"Those are the ones who will probably end up as Scavengers." Riley said.

Summer studied all of the information about the future she had access to.

"A few of them might." Summer said. "Most of them will end up as victims or dead."

Sarah could tell Summer wasn't bothered by any of it. It made her wonder how much a part of the operations she actually was. It was probably much more than any of them even speculated.

Summer, Sarah, and Riley continue to monitor the operation.

John and John Henry did as well. They stayed out of it.

Cam-Holly, Allison, and Claire headed towards the commissary. There were other things which needed to be attended to.

"I'm going to see about getting some dinner ready." Claire said.

Allison wondered where Vanna went off to. There were a few things she wanted to discuss with her.

The three of them would pass by the Command Center.

Cam-Holly quickly made a suggestion as they neared the recreation room. She was reminded by CamNet who was in the Command Center. She was currently busy with a minor operation. She looked at Claire.

"I want to go over a keyboard rift with you real quick." Cam-Holly said.

CamNet didn't want Claire to go into the Command Center. There were a few issues which needed to be resolved first. She didn't think it'd be a problem if Allison did.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Temporal Mission:

Past Timeline:

November 26 1963

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The girls headed southbound on Union Avenue.

Cameron didn't think it would be too hard to find the 55 Chevy. She was aware it weighed approximately 3,200 pounds. Depending upon what size mill he actually ran would determine his formidability. Her impression was it was a big block. It would make it a 348 or 409. It wasn't stock in the vehicle. Swapping engines was common among street racers. They usually wanted to have a more powerful engine than they currently possessed. They also tended to push them a little harder which resulted in their demise.

The street racers were always a little behind the 'factory vehicles'. The big companies had all of their resources behind them. When Chevrolet got wind of the Ford 427, they didn't have much to work with other than the W-Series engine. Their efforts were less than fruitful.

The 1963 Daytona 500 top finisher was the Galaxie with a 427. The top five finishers were all Fords. More than likely, they all ran the same engine. Chevrolet attempted to create something to be competitive. A special Impala, with a custom built Chevrolet W-Series 427 was built. It was lighter. It finished in ninth place. It was a dismal failure for the best efforts Chevrolet could throw forward. It was a reminder of the acronym of FORD, First On Race Day.

The current NASCAR limit was 427 cubic inches. Chevrolet needed to go back to the drawing board and start from scratch. Chevrolet needed to design the second generation 427 from the ground up to be in contention. The current lineup with their big block engine already reached its zenith. There was no way for them to be competitive with the Ford 427.

There was other competition. The 426 wedge, created from the 413 wedge, by Dodge was a better match, but still not good enough. Ford worked their way up with the 406 and the 410 before they reached 425 cubic inches. The limit was 427 cubic inches, so it's what the new engine was called. It wasn't uncommon for the actual cubic inch displacement to be called something different than it actually was. It was always within a few cubic inches so it wasn't a big deal in reality.

The racing community called for something even better. Hence, the vehicle they currently drove, the Lightweight Galaxie, and the Thunderbolt to follow next year, were hard acts to follow. Fifty years later, the Thunderbolt still set records.

The Ford 427 was bulletproof. It set the standard for everyone else to follow. The 427 is what made the Cobra and the GT-40 legendary. It wasn't the chassis which made them famous, it was the engine in them. When a competitor came out with the 426 Hemi, Ford immediately countered with an even better engine capable of much more horsepower. As soon as the other manufacturers got to look at the specs of the 427 SOHC, the panic was widespread. They lobbied to get the engine banned from racing before it could actually compete. It was the same tactic used against the Cobra and the GT-40 by the losers who couldn't compete at all.

Young Allison glanced over at Cameron.

"There's someone in the crosswalk up ahead." Young Allison said.

Cameron blinked her eyes twice. She was caught up in the thought of how something older could still prove to be quite effective, even with newer things out there. It reminded her of her.

"Thank you." Cameron said. "I don't want to endanger anyone needlessly."

Young Allison wondered what Cameron was distracted about. It usually wasn't anything good.

They crossed over Truxton Street as they headed south. There was a distinct dip in the road ahead of them. There was a bridge over it.

"We're about to go under the railroad tracks." Young Allison said.

No sooner than she finished her sentence, when they could see the locomotives from the train they passed earlier go across the bridge in front of them, as they went underneath it.

When they came up from the underpass, they could see the 'Bakersfield Sign' up ahead. It was just past California Avenue. It spanned from one side of the road to the other. It served as an overpass for a hotel located on both sides of Union Avenue.

"That's a really big sign." Young Allison said.

Cameron didn't care for the fate of the sign.

"It's a shame the sign fell into disrepair." Cameron said. "After the hotel went out of business, the sign became dilapidated and posed a safety risk from lack of maintenance. The state of California made the city tear it down. Some local residents protested and a new sign was built a few blocks away to replicate the old one. It was a long time landmark."

Young Allison was aware time didn't wait for anyone. She looked in back of them.

"There's someone coming up real fast behind us." Young Allison said.

Cameron looked in her rear view mirror as well as her side view mirror.

"It's the 55 Chevy." Cameron said.

Young Allison could feel her heart rate pick up a little bit.

"Do you think he's looking for us, or the yellow Deuce Coupe?" Young Allison asked.

Cameron watched as he pulled up right behind them.

"I'd say he's looking for us." Cameron said.

Young Allison looked back again.

"He sure is close." Young Allison said.

Cameron didn't care to be tailgated.

"Hang on to something." Cameron said.

Before Young Allison could grab on to anything, Cameron double clutched and downshifted from fourth gear into second. The car rapidly decelerated without her using the brakes. She double clutched again and stuck it into first gear. The tires chirped both times as the engine became a brake.

The 55 Chevy needed to swerve off to the side or run into the back of them when he realized they were rapidly slowing and hadn't used their brakes.

A message was sent by Cameron. She didn't like being messed with.

Young Allison figured it was probably only a matter of time before Cameron pulled out her Hi-Power and used it. She wondered if she would continue to look forward with one eye, look in the side view mirror with the other eye, and fire the Hi-Power out through the open window in back of her.

She knew a lot of individuals, especially during this time period, who thought there was a lot they could get away with. She could guarantee they never met a Terminator before. They wouldn't put up with any of the normal crap other people would need to deal with. She knew Cameron would use a little bit of restraint since she was there. If the perpetrator warranted a little further corrective action, she wasn't about to interfere with Cameron. She might only remind Cameron not to kill them. She actually didn't think there would be any loss if Cameron did terminate them.

The 55 Chevy pulled up alongside them on Young Allison's side. The exhaust was very loud. It sounded as if he was running uncorked headers. It could have been straight exhaust through 'glass pack' mufflers as well. 'Wrappers' didn't do much to mitigate the sound.

Time Didn't Wait

When the pace of life slows down
Things become quiet and sedate
It doesn't take too long
Before the start to stagnate

The lines begin to curve
When they were once straight
The things start to pile up
On a small plate

For every positive action
There are two to negate
The work becomes harder
They can no longer skate

The load gets heavier
As they need to carry more freight
It's more about the amount
Than it is the weight

There's no guesswork involved
Nor is it open for debate
A look in the mirror shows
Time didn't wait

Nobody