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|August 4 2009, 02:33 AM
Location: Aboard the Executor...
Re: The Terminator Chronicles: Second Chance
Season One: Gnothi Seauton
Season One: Vick's Chip
Gods Not Dead
|August 4 2009, 02:44 AM
Location: Aboard the Executor...
Re: The Terminator Chronicles: Second Chance
I'm still revising some things and adding others. The next chapter should be up tomorrow.
Gods Not Dead
|August 5 2009, 07:15 AM
Location: Aboard the Executor...
Re: The Terminator Chronicles: Second Chance
No one could say that humanity hadn't learned that biological imperative. Every day of life in this new world was filled with finding newer and cleverer ways of surviving to live just another day. Humanity got smarter, but so did the machines. Because of their own mistakes, mankind made the very creatures that would supplant the human race as the dominate form of life on the planet. Derek hated that. The survivors were paying for the mistakes of their parents and now humanity was about to die because of it. The refugees were finding less and less survivors and more and more machines that wanted to kill them during the patrols. It was like something out of a horror movie fed nightmare.
Now the machines had found a way of striking a more destructive blow. No matter who you were or what you did if you found a living human you were excited and you felt better than ever before. It was this very fact that led to Skynet adapting yet again. Skynet started to get creative and started putting machines wrapped in rubber onto the ground with the express orders of killing as many humans as possible. For a while it worked, but only from a distance. The further away you were the more likely you'd think that the rubber skinned bastards were real people. When you got close you'd see that they were the exact opposite. The rubber was good, there was no disputing that, but it looked fake the closer you got and it withered away within days revealing the metal skeleton beneath the surface. In the beginning Skynet was tricking people left and right, but humanity adapted. Humanity changed.
Then, apparently, so did the machines. Skynet took all the information that it had from the Series 600 and made a new endoskeleton. They brought forth something more deadly than ever before. It created these infiltrators - if Kyle's source was to be trusted (which Derek doubted). It couldn't be true. How could skin be grown just for metal? What made it live? Did these infiltrators eat to keep the skin alive? Did it smell real? Did it sweat, have bad breath, and bleed? It was a ludicrous idea. It just wasn't possible. There was no way what so ever that it could be true. Machines couldn't have a living component.
Nevertheless, the machines had proven that they were constantly trying to find ways to improve themselves. If it were true that's exactly what they'd done. They'd made people, but that was impossible too. No matter how advanced the machines became they would always lack that spark of life that made a human a human. They'd never love, they'd never be afraid, they'd never feel anything. They'd always lack that one little piece of person that separated man from machine. The metal bastards could never have that. They'd never have a soul, but did anyone have one of those anymore? No one was innocent; no one was a good man or woman, not even kids these days could claim innocence for their crimes. They'd all lied, they'd all cheated, and only a few had been lucky enough not to have to murder to survive. If they had souls Derek knew with every fiber of his being exactly where he and the rest of humanity were going to end up. Truth be told it couldn't be much worse than the world he already lived in; if it existed at all.
While he walked down the old cinderblock corridor he heard the doors open in the distance and the dogs started to bark in frenzied agony. His first thoughts made him wonder what the hell they were barking about so spiritedly. Then his mind reached the point where he realized they were just excited to see new faces (like the rest of them always were). That was when John Connor's words returned to him and replayed over and over in his mind. Dogs could tell friend from foe. Then he heard that old familiar sound. People screaming as a plasma rifle spewed its deadly payload.
Another scream this time with a single, deadly phrase, "METAL!"
"Protect the children!" Another yelled.
Derek pulled the phased plasma rifle from his back right as he saw it approaching. It was a man, or at least he thought it was a man, who looked unlike anything Derek had ever seen before. He was tall and powerfully built; too powerfully built for someone growing up on scraps of food and garbage. His face was the same quality as a magazine model and was without a single blemish upon its porcelain like skin. Kyle's mysterious informant had been right about it. This machine did look human. Everything about him looked like he was made of flesh and blood not a heinous mix of steel and flesh. On a battlefield he would've had one thing giving him away. The gun he carried was certainly not standard issue for a human or even something that the fittest among them could ever dream of wielding. It was the size of a minigun, but it was far more deadly than the already destructive weapon. A minigun fired bullets, this was firing beams of concentrated plasma at speeds far greater than a human mind could count.
Derek held out his diminutive in comparison plasma rifle and returned fire against the machine. It was of no effect. He scored several direct hits against the chest of the metal monster, but it didn't even step back or flinch. A hit that would've knocked a six hundred on its ass ten feet away was just brushed off by this new foe. In the blink of an eye the enemy repositioned itself and pointed the barrel right at Derek's chest. Pushing his body to the limit he jumped just as the machine pulled the trigger. Dozens of pulses slammed into the wall where Derek had just been drilling holes through to the other side but somehow missing him entirely.
"Goddamn metal bastard," Reese cursed as he hid behind the broken wall. The machine kept walking forward while Derek planned his next move. More and more plasma bursts slammed into walls and, sadly, people during Reese's moment of indecision. Plaster rained upon him like fresh snow as the onslaught continued around him. He was better than this. Why was he letting the machine make him look like a fool?
Getting back to his feet he pointed the gun and pulled the trigger only to find that the tin can wasn't there anymore. It'd moved on but where was it going? There were only a few key points that it could track down if this machine followed standard Skynet tactics. So far everything about the automaton, despite its resilience, was following the beaten trail. The power center was fitted with the emergency generators that powered the base so they'd be high on the target list to allow for an invasion. The barracks were another source because the machine could kill a lot of people there – not that there were many to begin with in the first place since the evacuation was just sounded. Then there was command and control: his brother Kyle. That had to be it. The machine would go for his brother. It only made sense.
Reese vaulted over the barrier and started running down the hall. He had to protect his little brother; the rest of them could take care of themselves.
Allison Young was famished though that was a feeling she'd gotten used to during the long years of the War Against the Machines. To even getting a moment to eat with her friends and, dare she say it, family was welcome to her after having been on patrol for so long; though, even getting the time to eat alone was something she rarely had time for. She was always busy with some task or another. Whether it be planning an operation, running patrol, or playing nursemaid to her wounded comrades she always had something on her plate. Now she was just grateful to have some food on that plate.
The meal could've been a bit larger, but beggars certainly couldn't be choosers and she was happy with what she had. Their cook of the day, Timms she assumed, had been able to make some bread and, somehow, someone had caught one of the stray deer that'd escaped from the Los Angeles County Zoo and had survived for so long. A part of her hated that a living, breathing, being had given its life to sustain her. The other side of her body was crying out for some sort of nourishment. After a silent apology to the creature and thanking it for its sacrifice, she bit into the wonderful sandwich she'd made. Her years of stockpiling made her hold back from gobbling the food up like a pig; yet her stomach cried for more. As she went to take another bite both her stockpiling and stomach were overrode when the alarms began to sound.
"Has ta be another drill," Andre Sumner tried to reassure her as he set down his dirty piece of bread. "Da machines haven't been able ta find us so far and I doubt they did today. We've been to smart for dem."
"Don't be so sure," she answered him. "This is a day of firsts after all. The first day any of us have had some meat in years other than the rodent variety. Plus, there was no drill scheduled for today. I would've known." As well she would have. She had often helped Derek, John, and Kyle prepare the invasion scenarios.
Andre thought about making a comment about meat, her, and John Connor - their supposed messiah - but he held his tongue as no to provoke his beautiful friend. Instead he got up from the table and extended his hand to help Allison get up from her side. "When we make it outta dis one I'll hunt you down a cow and make ya a hamburger. Dat way you get more meat on your skinny bones."
"I'm sure you will," she sighed and got up from the table. "Not like any of us have anything better to do. I hope Kyle doesn't," she shut up midsentence when she heard it: the familiar whine. She looked at Sumner who was just as on edge as she was. She had to ask but his face all but screamed in confirmation, "You heard it too?"
Sumner flipped the safety of his rifle to the off position and started down the hallway with Allison mere inches behind him. Neither of the two had had formal military training of any sort; though, a lifetime of running away from thinking machines had given them a degree from the school of hard knocks. Now they rivaled any of the soldiers from before the fall of mankind. Allison, however, had made a tremendous mistake. Thinking she was 'off duty' she'd left her weapon in her cabin when she went to eat. All she had by her side was her Glock 17 pistol. Not that it'd do much good in a fight if Skynet's army was invading other than giving an endoskeleton a battle hardened look. Pistols and non plasma weapons were mainly used to defend against other humans and that was the extent of their usefulness. You could, sometimes, take out lesser drones but that was with a hell of a lot of luck.
The two soldiers slowly made their way down the long corridor keeping their backs flat against the wall as they walked. The less exposed the better off they'd be in a firefight. Both of them scanned the cramped confines looking for anything that was out of place. They hoped that if there was something that was missed that the other would pick up on it and compensate for the other's failing. That wouldn't happen today. During the drills they'd both done this hundreds of times and they knew what to expect and pretty much when to expect it. Today they just got the chance to put what was once theory into practice.
Theory became more real the moment they reached the front door. Only minutes ago they'd both left here and it was a secure port in the storm. Now it looked like a tornado had ripped through it tearing it to shreds. Bodies lined the floor with their cauterized wounds still giving off an acrid smelling smoke that billowed upward. A stray plasma pulse ripped into the masonry above them and caused light chunks of plaster to rain upon the ground. The dog kennel where Allison had been playing what felt like seconds ago with her four legged friends brought only sorrow as she looked at their lifeless bodies. Allison felt sick to her stomach looking at all the carnage around her and she wanted whatever did this to pay. How could anything, including Skynet, kill defenseless people and innocent animals?
She already knew the answer, but never had it hit this close to home. Every day before this they'd always been able to escape before the machines got this far that they struck in what they felt as safety. When the Series 7T Hunter Killer was destroyed they'd all assumed that it was over and that they'd somehow held back the machines for just another day. They'd even convinced themselves that they wouldn't have to move and that the machines would move on assuming that the humans had left in fear. That was their mistake and now several living, breathing people had already paid the price for their failure.
It wasn't over yet though. In the distance she heard the sound of a plasma rifle being discharged. The steady, repeated sounds were oddly like the notes from a song. Allison missed music. Her mother had been a teacher and an accomplished pianist. Her home as a child had been filled with Chopin and Beethoven. Now music only came from their guns. A bittersweet symphony if there ever were one. She looked at Sumner who stood with his rifle pointed up the small set of stairs before them.
"We need ta get goin," he reminded. "That machine's still down here killin' our friends. We have ta help dem."
Allison was in no position to argue. As she was bending down to grab the rifle of Cullen that was when she saw it. Through the open portal to the outside world the peaceful serenity of the water was being disrupted. Ripples and waves spread through the water like a tidal wave was coming for her, hunting her. Metal fins protruded up from the muck filled dankness and then she saw it erupting upward like a dolphin coming out to play. This wasn't a playful animal. A hydrobot leaped from the water and came right for her with metal pinchers clamping shut over and over. Somehow she moved right in the nick of time and missed its sharp claws by mere inches (the metal fingers had slid through her hair as she dove cutting away part of her brown locks). She turned on her back and emptied the clip of her pistol into the machine that flopped around like a fish out of water, but she knew it was already too late.
The machines could talk to each other, it was a long held theory that was confirmed when John joined them, and this robotic hunter had undoubtedly already sent the messages home. Its big brother was the first wave and this little guy told her that more were on the way and helped to point out the door. She looked to Sumner and he was already running to the door having reached the same conclusion that more would be coming. Right as he started pulling they could hear the repeated firing of machine guns in the distance. Andre had been lucky just as she had been. The bullets managed to miss hid head, but only barely as he struggled to pull it inward. He slammed down the bar sealing the old pressure door; nevertheless, both knew the truth. They were out of time. Skynet had found them and was striking harder than ever before.
Instead of signaling the already active invasion alarm this time she sent another message. It wasn't her place to make this choice, but there was no alternative. Holding down the control stud the alarms suddenly changed. The new message that each of the survivors, each of her friends, was hearing told them that the situation was untenable. The soldiers of Skynet had come for them and this time there was no defending their home. They'd have to run through the emergency escape tunnels to one of the prearranged safe zones. It was the only way that they'd be able to survive.
Slamming the spent Glock into the holster around her leg she picked up Cullen's plasma rifle. She flipped the switch putting it into live mode and checked the shot levels. With a full clip of 99 shots in the pulse rifle she started through the antiquated tunnels looking for the nearest escape hatch. As she struggled to keep up with Sumner – not to mention remember her training as it slid like sand through her fingers – she had one thought cross her mind. It wasn't a thought about herself. The thought wasn't about her training or where she'd go when she escaped from her hell bound home. Her thoughts were about one man.
"John where are you?" She said in a whisper so low she wasn't even sure Andre could hear.
Gods Not Dead
|August 5 2009, 07:15 AM
Location: Aboard the Executor...
Re: The Terminator Chronicles: Second Chance
For the Infiltration Prototype none of these feelings had ever passed through its cybernetic consciousness. There were millions of considerations, calculations, but never once was it afraid, excited, remorseful, or bored. Some people would call it determined, but that wasn't brought about through an emotion. Its determination stemmed from a very intricate computer program that ran its every movement, controlled its every action down to the very pressure that it placed in each and every step that it took. It wasn't even fatigued by the massive Heavy Repeating Plasma Rifle that it was carrying which the average human could never dream of even lifting let alone walking with.
As it ascended the stairs it spotted another human, this one armed with a plasma weapon. The sophisticated tactical analysis software that Skynet had granted it calculated in the span of a nanosecond all of the vital statistics about the target from his height and weight to the risk level that the human brought to the machine. Armed as it was, with a confiscated Skynet Plasma Rifle according to a database comparison that took only a billionth of a second, the human was an actual threat to the automaton and had achieved a moderate risk level through the complex equations derived by the tactical software.
This still brought the cybernetic organism no fear. Hundreds of thousands of numbers scrolled through its systems as plasma pulses crashed into the torso assembly – one of which had hit a critical location and nearly caused catastrophic system damage to the power systems. The machine had already isolated the damage before the human had finished his attack and had selected an attack program of its own. The machine's software counted the shots as forty-seven plasma pulses lanced out from the tip of the blaster and sped toward their target. Despite the impressive number of shots none had reached their designated target. Somehow he'd managed to evade each of the beams of plasma by moving faster than anticipated. For his size and physique the human was agile. If it were possible the machine would have been surprised.
But it wasn't possible in any sense of the term. The infiltrator compensated and continued firing at the target even though he'd hid behind a small partition made of cement. It was of no consequence and would only be a momentary delay to termination. The weapon would simply dig through the makeshift fortification until it buckled and gave either a clear shot of the target or until the target was killed by a stray shot that made its way to him. Either way the Skynet soldier wouldn't stop until its target had been wiped from the face of the devastated Earth.
Or, until Skynet deemed otherwise. As it fired another sequence of pulses an override appeared on its screens and the Series 800 infiltrator's finger would no longer function. From a distance Skynet had ordered the machine to end its assault on this particular human and move on to another target. There would be no questioning of Skynet's orders, no attempts by the loyal foot soldier to circumvent its commands and continue the chase despite the tactical grid explaining that the human would be reached with only an additional seven shots fired. Instead the machine's arm lifted straight up pulling the colossal gun into a vertical position. It turned effortlessly and continued down another hallway scanning the scene as it moved. Auditory sensors, the most advanced Skynet had available, detected that the target had come to his feet, vaulted over the barricade, and even fired a shot into nothing since it had resumed its patrol.
The infiltrator was neither concerned nor curious regarding the alterations to its orders, but it had a query for its artificial master. Was it authorized to terminate now that the human had revealed itself? The automaton had calculated a high probability Skynet had simply wanted it to conserve its depleting ammunition rather than waste the last few precious shots and have to engage in hand to hand with the priority targets. Its question had a swift answer and, for a human, the response would have been astounding. The machine took it in stride. Skynet had denied the termination request without giving either a reason or even a hint regarding its choice. The hyperalloy based combat chassis with epidermal ablative armor just kept walking toward its next target.
Kyle Reese didn't crave command and, in truth, he hated it. When he and Derek began letting people join them in Griffith Observatory after their father, Dennis, died he'd always assumed that Derek would be their leader. Derek was older, he was the more experienced one, and dad seemed to trust him to be a protector and leader. Their father was a great judge of character and knew what made a good leader. A soldier for all of his life, Dennis trained the next generation of soldiers and taught both of his sons how to lead both as citizens and as soldiers. Derek always seemed like the natural choice to be that leader and Kyle was a better fit to be the wingman. It wasn't that he couldn't do it, but he always felt his skills were better suited elsewhere. He was a soldier.
His brother Derek was a good leader, but as time went on he'd lost something of their father's teachings. His older brother never lost the military training that their father had instilled in them nor his ability to handle a weapon (which some could consider the most valuable gifts). As time moved forward though he lost something of his faith in people; Derek lost the value of human life. He still knew that people were important and that they needed to survive, but he could also throw it out the door if it suited his needs. Derek became snarky, cynical, and paranoid. The only person keeping him grounded was Kyle and, for a time, the Australian Jesse that washed up upon the shore.
The community decided, after a mission where Derek lost nearly half of their group and didn't seem to care one way or the other, that it was time for a new leader to take charge. The younger Reese always assumed that Earl Wise would take charge of their community because he'd been Derek's second. Somehow though leadership progressed on to Kyle and, for four years, he'd led this community as they struggled to survive. He'd been intense at times as he felt the weight of the world on his shoulders; nevertheless, Kyle'd risen to the challenges that came to him; all the same they still lost people and it was always hard on Kyle. Still, he became the soldier that his father always hoped he'd be. He was dedicated, courageous, and honorable; though he remembered that people were the most important thing in all war. He hoped that his father was proud of him and of Derek.
Now, though, he found himself more worried about papers and their salvaged computer mainframes than the people of his community. He'd made a point of having several battle drills to prepare the refuges if they'd have to flee so he wasn't extremely worried about their survival, but he'd have preferred to lead the evacuation himself. Instead he left that up to whoever had pulled the alarm and hoped that he or she hadn't been killed in the process. His priority was to make sure that the power generators weren't disabled because, if they were, then the evacuation would get a hell of a lot messier. John was back at the Command Chamber taking care of their systems to make sure that Skynet didn't have anything of value; that Skynet didn't know the source of their information.
Not that any of them knew much of anything anyway. For a while, surprisingly since John Connor came into their lives, every so often they'd find little pieces of paper that had vital clues on them. At first they contained little things like enemy troop movements or the locations of a Skynet supply and weapons caches. Then things became a bit more detailed. Specifics on weaknesses of certain models would be uncovered, blueprint diagrams (like the ones of this T-800) found, even the attack plan Skynet had detailed to attack one of the bunkers they'd established with Martin Bedell was discovered. Kyle had never admitted this but he thought he saw their benefactor once. He saw a young girl with hair the color of fire. He followed her into a dead end and knew that she ducked behind an overturned trash can. When he got to it there was nothing there. No girl, no nothing, just an empty bin. He never told anyone because he was sure they'd think he'd gone insane. Not that it was a far leap in a world of intelligent machines.
Though, they couldn't risk Skynet finding out about the traitor amongst its ranks. That was why John had stayed back to take care of everything they'd acquired. The loss of the papers and hard copies was tragic, but the leaders of the community had memorized their contents enough that they were no longer needed. He would have preferred more time to go over the plans of Topanga Canyon and the installation there, not to mention the vital strategic data on the Series 800, but he had the gist of the contents. Normally he would've hung back to take care of the materials himself, but there was something about John Connor. There was something that told Kyle that he could trust the man to do what was best. It was a strange feeling to him. He'd known John for only a handful of years, but the kid felt like family to him to the point that he was just as important to Kyle as Derek. Kyle never understood why; nor did he understand why John seemed to feel the same way about him. They once found a small compound his mother had set up filled with supplies and John had even given him a picture of his mother that was among the stores.
The snapshot became Kyle's lucky charm. Often when he was alone with the privacy of his thoughts he'd think of the beautiful Sarah Connor. He'd never met her that he knew of, nor would he ever, but, just like with John, he felt a connection. The feelings were unlike anything that Reese had ever felt before in his lifetime. Was it possible to fall in love with someone when you had only a picture? Kyle didn't know and he didn't dare broach the subject with John or Derek. Command was a lonely place; though, when looking at Sarah Connor's photograph, he didn't feel so isolated anymore.
As he stood inside the power generator room he checked the various readouts of their old, military surplus generator. Everything seemed to be working in perfect order. It was taxed to the limit, what else was new, but everything seemed to be perfectly okay. It was even freshly filled with reserves from their dwindling gasoline supplies for a few extra moments of power. He resealed the protective fence that surrounded it and headed off to the corner nearest the door. Sliding one of the crates away he pressed his back up against the wall and let his body fall behind it. He waited in silence going over his training.
Every living, breathing human had enough experience with the machines to know that they followed a methodical approach to their invasions and, despite their artificial intelligence, very rarely strayed from their program. The first stage always involved finding and destroying the power system – eliminating any resistance while underway. After that it would look for the command and control, specifically the base commander, and then terminate him; again killing any resistance while en route. After those two tasks were accomplished it would just perform a standard search algorithm and kill any remaining targets. It was stupid for Kyle to go to the very target before him on the list, but they didn't have many options and their power systems needed to be protected. It was the right thing to do so that the others could escape.
As he checked his gun he heard someone, or something, at the pressure door isolating the power generator chamber from the rest of the base. The chamber had been sealed off from the rest of their home, but the door was opening. It was impossible for any human to get in there so he knew what was coming. As he peered over the crate he was behind his suspicions were confirmed. A massive man, at least it looked like a man, came through the portal and stared right at the power systems for several moments. His tattered clothes were stained with blood and metal glistened beneath the open wounds. Even his face hadn't escaped damage. The red eyes, the hallmark of a Skynet assassin, shone brightly. It lowered its gun toward the generator. One shot from the devastating weapon would be more than enough to knock them back to the Stone Age.
Kyle had to stop it. He couldn't let it win. From inside his vest he pulled a small grenade that they'd received, coincidentally, from the stockpile where John gave him the photo of Sarah Connor. He pulled the pin and threw it over the wooden crate toward the machine at the door. It landed right between the artificial life-form's legs as the countdown clock played through in Kyle's head. Three seconds passed and the enemy was just starting to comprehend what was happening to it. Before it could react the weapon exploded knocking the automaton back on its ass through the door.
Through the threshold Kyle heard something sounding like the growl of a panther. Within seconds the burning infiltrator had returned to its feet and was back inside the chamber. The flames of hell burned behind it and along the walls of the complex, but the robot didn't care in the slightest. It merely turned its burning head toward him and stared for a second as it calculated an appropriate action; the software running the machine was telling the hardware the source of the grenade. The right arm assembly restored the heavy repeater to firing position and pulled the trigger. All that came was the clicking noise of an empty chamber. The explosion had destroyed the metal bastard's gun. Reese was damn lucky.
Reese's rifle, however, was another story. The human raised the gun toward the machine and pulled the trigger as quickly as he could. Pulse after pulse of superheated plasma spewed from the barrel and slammed into the burning contraption's body. Some shots hit the chest ripping into it, others the skull assembly, a few hit the extremities. None of the shots missed, but none of them were the bull's eye either. As Kyle pulled the trigger again the rifle clicked. It was overheated and the gun would need to cool.
In other words he was screwed. The mechanisms of the machine propelled it forward toward him and it closed the gap that had existed between them in the blink of an eye. Kyle started pounding against the endoskeleton with a crowbar until the enemy combatant finally was able to hold off his futile blows. It grabbed the crowbar in midair as it was mid-swing and ripped it from Reese's fingers – blood coming from the human's hand. The endoskeleton examined the crowbar for a moment and then bent it into a horseshoe shape. It threw it aside where it crashed into the corner as useless as before.
The left arm of the battle droid shot up and grabbed hold of Kyle Reese's neck. With little effort it lifted him up off of the ground and held him suspended in the air as its program fed it new and commands. While he wondered what lay beyond Kyle imagined that there was a cartoon hamster inside the machine's head running on its exercise wheel powering the thought process. It, at least, made it easier to accept the inevitable fate that would soon befall him. Kyle Reese was about to die and there would be no reprieve, no salvation, no escape from his ultimate destruction.
Kyle felt the cold steel grip of death close around his throat. Then the darkness surrounded him.
Gods Not Dead
|August 5 2009, 07:22 AM
Location: Aboard the Executor...
Re: The Terminator Chronicles: Second Chance
Chapter 3
Pages: 10
Words: 5,981
Gods Not Dead
|August 5 2009, 10:49 PM
Fleet Captain
Location: Im in ur Tardis, violating ur canon.
Re: The Terminator Chronicles: Second Chance
Some good action sequences there.
|August 7 2009, 07:31 AM
Location: Aboard the Executor...
Re: The Terminator Chronicles: Second Chance
I plan to put up the next entry over the weekend.
Gods Not Dead
|August 11 2009, 06:54 PM
Location: Aboard the Executor...
Re: The Terminator Chronicles: Second Chance
I have the next chapter about 90% completed and should post it within the next day.
Gods Not Dead
|August 11 2009, 07:26 PM
Fleet Captain
Location: Im in ur Tardis, violating ur canon.
Re: The Terminator Chronicles: Second Chance
My own attempt at writing has taught me that these things never seem to go as fast as you want them to!
|August 12 2009, 10:40 PM
Location: Aboard the Executor...
Re: The Terminator Chronicles: Second Chance
He couldn't imagine what they were like before he'd arrived though. When he first appeared in the future with the shape-shifter he was taken to the outpost that Kyle's group was operating out of. For fear that Skynet may have located them via spy satellite; they decided to move to an alternate site from the main one. Back then escapes were a lot harder and far more complicated during an evacuation (and not only because he was new to this reality). There were no emergency escape hatches that people could get through – no tunnels other than the main one into and out of the base. There wasn't even an alarm to signal the evacuation orders and it had to be done by word of mouth. The first thing that John did was worked with Kyle and Derek to build escape tunnels separate from the main ones that they could use in emergencies. They were simple, made by throwing up walls and blocking paths, but they were effective. That one little suggestion enhanced the evacuation efficiency; the alarms nearly doubled the survival rate. Now building those tunnels was the first thing that they did no matter where they were living; planning the evacuations were the second. It was morbid but it was the only way to stay alive.
There was also a better division of labor since John arrived. It was true that it'd be better for a team to be making sure that anything that could risk their safety be destroyed, but that just wasn't an option with more advanced machines coming from Skynet factories. Now, since they split up to accomplish key goals, they could cover more ground and keep the essential tasks going even if one were disrupted. Normally it'd be Kyle who was making sure that the secret documents got burned and that the mainframes were destroyed, but that wasn't the case today. Today he'd left that task to John, not that John was complaining. It gave him a few minutes to flip through some of the more restricted documents that even he hadn't seen. Kyle's mysterious benefactor had been busy; there was a lot of crucial information here about a variety of subjects ranging from endoskeletons to improving the efficiency of the power cells of the plasma rifles.
As he threw several of the files into the oil drum filled with flames he wondered just who that benefactor was. No one had seen him, her, or – quite possibly – it. John had a few theories about who could be behind their gifts, not that he'd share. Catherine Weaver was the biggest possibility, if she were still active which she probably was. John Henry was another likely choice, but John wasn't even sure if he could still be functional either. For being built to serve as an AI to fight Skynet he wasn't doing the best damn job in the world. Humanity was losing this war, but maybe he really was only out to help the mysterious other faction? Then there were a few human possibilities. James Ellison could still be alive or maybe Savannah Weaver – she was probably taught and prepared by Ellison after Catherine escorted John to the future. Then there was one name that still came to him and flashed over and over in his mind.
Sarah Connor: mom. Could his mother still be alive and fighting the machines today? Kyle never met her in the present or the future from what John knew. Cameron told him that his mother died of cancer in the original timeline and that was why they jumped through time in the first place. Did she succumb to cancer in this reality too or was she still out there somewhere? Why wouldn't she reveal herself if she was? Why wouldn't she try to find him? It couldn't be her; though, silently, he hoped that it was her. He could use the help and her experience. Hit mother was a fighter so if she'd somehow survived this he probably wouldn't be surprised by it.
Especially right now. In the distance he heard the sound of more plasma rifle discharges echoing through the sandstone and cement halls. He should have expected something like this to happen especially now that they were planning an attack. It only made sense that they'd be attacked this close to the offensive against Topanga Canyon - it happened in every other timeline so why would this one be any different? He'd long theorized that the timeline was constantly trying to right itself despite the constant changes caused by the temporal incursions both on Skynet's side and the Resistance's. Time was trying to find a way to fix itself and a lot of the things that he'd heard about through stories still seemed to happen even in this upside down timeline.
So why would Topanga be any different? The story and the players were the same; just the characterizations were different. In the original timeline John was trying to keep the power systems online while the machines invaded the base and Kyle was making sure that the mainframes and classified materials were destroyed. The locations were even the same. They were in tunnels underneath what was once called Pico Tower – a high-rise hotel. The first machine sent in was an infiltrator that targeted the leader of the base (in the original timeline John; in this one Kyle). The machines were coming in from all the available entrances they could find. It was almost exactly the same.
Right as he finished up burning their files and setting up the demolition charges around the mainframes he heard a noise at the door. Diving he rolled and crouch walked to the central table. He pulled his rifle from the smooth tabletop, disengaged the safety, and pointed the barrel at the door. The young soldier kept his finger on the trigger and kept his finger ready to strike. He wanted to be ready to pull the trigger if the machine came in from the other side. Deep in the recesses of his mind he wondered which infiltrator Skynet would use this time (he never learned the style used in the raid). Would it be Uncle Bob? The machine sent for Bedell? Rosie? Carl Greenway? Was it going to be any of a slew of other possibilities ranging from all shapes and sizes? Could it even be Cromartie – well Cromartie before he was taken over by John Henry?
The shape came through the door. John pointed the rifle at the head and got ready to pull the trigger, right when he realized who it was. It wasn't a machine - at least he assumed that it wasn't because he'd yet to see a machine wearing the face of Derek Reese. He moved the plasma rifle to a resting position and got back to his charges. Derek had other plans, he wanted to question Connor.
"Where's my brother?" He asked without delay.
John had heard about Derek's continued quest to find out more about Kyle following the Mission to Topanga in the other reality from Cameron. He'd even lived part of it while Charley tried to save Derek after he was shot by Vick Chamberlain. Back then Derek had demanded answers from John even as he lay bleeding on the kitchen counter from his wounds. John knew the futility of trying to lie to him about something that was so important in Derek's mind; in all their minds. Family was truly important even now.
"I really don't know. He was going to the Generator Room to make sure that it was defended during the evacuation. He asked me to…"
The older Reese screamed, "And you let him go alone?"
"I really didn't have a choice," Connor answered him as he activated the timers. "I had to make sure that these files and the mainframes were destroyed so that Skynet didn't know what we're up to."
"Face it," Derek shook his head incredulously, "Skynet already knows everything. How else could it've found us? We too every precaution…"
This time John interrupted him, "And sometimes the machines just guess right. This time they guessed right; so we need to make sure that everything that could lead them to us is destroyed and then we need to get the hell out of here." He tried not to tip his hand too much to let Derek know that he knew more than he should. John looked at the countdown, "And we only have thirty seconds left before we get entombed a thousand feet below the surface if we stay in this room so we need to get the hell out of here! Let's go get Kyle…"
The explosion was hard to mistake. John and Derek shared a look then they ran for the door. The only room in the entire base that was designed to be destroyed was the control room, which John had just set the detonators for. That meant that somewhere else in the base someone was in a hell of a lot of trouble and both knew exactly where that likely was. The machine had changed its attack plan. It was after the power systems and that had to be where the explosion came from. That was where Kyle was.
They both ran as fast as they could for the source.
Maneuvering through the emergency escape tunnel was like trying to navigate through a maze blindfolded. The whole tunnel was as dark as the night sky and the ground was broken up from years of weathering and misuse. A putrid smell, like rotten eggs but worse, made its way through the air and assaulted their nostrils. Every few minutes the ground and walls would shake as a Hunter Killer tank rolled over the streets above them with its massive treads. Even though the tunnel gave them some protection and all they could hear were the sounds; Allison imagined the sick sound of the skeletons of their fathers and mothers breaking under the weight of the colossus. It wasn't the first time that it happened, it probably wouldn't be the last, and like every time before her eyes let loose a single tear of sorrow.
Ahead of her Andre Sumner and Eduardo Timms were helping three children down the long pipe, but both of the men stopped to check on her. Sumner shone the flashlight, one of the last working ones in the world she theorized, in her eyes. She shielded herself with her forearm trying to block out the blinding light as best she knew how. Normally she'd want the light; right now all she wanted was to be in the dark. She wished she had never been born into this.
"Get that damn light out of my face!"
"Just checkin ta see if ya back tere lil lady," it was of course Andre with his distinctive accent and speaking style. She knew that he spoke normal English, avoiding the accent and words of the land where he grew up from time to time, but this wasn't one of those times. Timms grinned from ear to ear like the Cheshire Cat, the latest in his line of flirting looks.
Holding onto her rifle tightly she made her way up to them over the cracked cement, "I'm not a little lady that needs two big strong men to keep her going; I don't need anyone. Whoever told you I was was lying to you so just get that thought outta your heads." She dropped her hand and looked at Timms, "That goes to both of yours."
"You're not my type," Timms said back to her hoping that the kids didn't understand what she was saying. He didn't care if they did, but he hid his embarrassment. She was the first to refuse him in a long time. They didn't have many options after all.
"And you're not mine," she said looking him dead in the face then she remembered that the kids were there. Timms had quite the reputation among the survivors as being what they would have called a player a lifetime ago. He didn't seem to get over the fact that they were dying; he just hopped from bed to bed and didn't care about the consequences. One of Allison's friends had killed herself after seeing him with another woman.
"Let's keep moving before the metal starts following us," she ordered without any real authority over them.
Sumner agreed, "Best idea I heard in a long time."
They continued on their march toward the escape. The kids were doing remarkably well considering the circumstances, but kids were better survivors than even the adults in this world. Kids could adapt quickly to new situations; adults had a bit more trouble with change. Kids weren't blowing their heads off after the fall of man – adults were left and right. Those kids were now they adults and taking care of the next generation. Some of them were even losing that gift of adaptation.
Allison herself was only a kid when the bombs fell. She was three years old when Judgment Day came and she wasn't even with her parents at the time. She had been in the care of their kindly old next door neighbor Mrs. McCluskey because her mom and dad were both at work. She was eating, something better than garbage probably but she barely remembered, but she could remember seeing the mushroom clouds in the bay window. They hung over Los Angeles and, to her young eyes; they were prettiest things that she'd ever seen. Mrs. McCluskey had a harder time with it, frantically moving and trying to get things together. Allison never cried out for her parents, never even cried once during the storm, but she silently worried about her mom and dad not understanding what had happened (all she wanted to know at that moment was if they saw the pretty cloud). A short time later Mrs. McCluskey passed away from the stress – a heart attack most likely – and Allison was left alone at the age of three to fend for herself.
As the group came to the Y-shaped intersection she stood for a moment to regain her bearings. It was pretty clever of them when they came up with the escape route. If you went to the left you'd end up back at the base near the entrance, but if you went to the right you'd come out at the intersection of Third Street and Cameron in about half a mile. There was another intersection shaped like a fork. If you stayed on the right path there were booby traps and detours that you had to know how to navigate through. The one in the middle led to a massive drop off that would kill you. Then if you went to the left you'd be able to get to the escape tunnel. The machines could never navigate through these jury rigged tunnels, well they could but it'd probably take some time, so they needed whatever advantages they could get. Allison took point and led them through the tunnel.
They didn't get far before all hell broke loose. About two hundred feet down the long corridor another Hunter Killer patrol rolled over the streets above them. This time the ground shook and buckled, which was made worse when they heard the explosion. It shouldn't have done any damage, but the explosion rocked the foundations of the tunnels. Rubble and debris fell from the ceiling and separated Allison from the rest of her group. She turned back and started clawing at the garbage; there had to be at least three feet of debris separating her from the others. She kept clawing at it trying to free them, but it was a worthless gesture. If only she'd had her rifle she could've blasted away the field. They couldn't follow her; there was no way they could maneuver through the junk. They'd have to loop back around to the other side. If they were alive of course.
Allison was torn. She could help free them but risk being captured by the machines, or she could keep going down the corridor and escape. There were points where she could possible loop back around and, if she were lucky, she could get to them, but there weren't many of those options ahead of her. There was just too much debris blocking her path to her friends, to the children. Looking down the dark corridor she knew what she had to do. Instead of running to her freedom she ran to the intersection that led back to the base. Her legs pumped as fast and as hard as she could make them go. She passed the turn that would lead to freedom and raced to the far end that would loop back giving her the chance to rescue the others. She rounded the corner and fell back on her butt. Looking up she saw a vision of hell light up before her. Twin red eyes started to glow and they focused in on her. The machines had found the escape tunnels and they were lying in wait, just waiting for the refugees to try to escape. She apologized silently and started down the exit conduit, praying for her friends and her own survival.
Gods Not Dead
|August 12 2009, 10:40 PM
Location: Aboard the Executor...
Re: The Terminator Chronicles: Second Chance
It stood in the fire unconcerned for the biological and more focused on the technological. Significant portions of its processor were focused on repairs, but the rest was busy calculating the source of the explosive that had damaged it. It took a second but the software directed it right to the source. The assassin restored the heavy plasma weapon to firing position and pulled the trigger. Error messages flashed across its field of vision informing it that its weapon was destroyed in the explosion. While it calculated an alternative response the human opened fire against its attacker. This human's attack was far better than the one who attacked it in the hallway. Perhaps it was because the machine had already been damaged in the explosion, it didn't know the answer to the question, but the human's recent assault had managed to disable the right arm assembly. Worse it had caused significant damage to the primary processors. The Skynet battle droid shifted to auxiliary command functions to keep itself online and operating for at least the next few minutes. It had a mission to perform and its target was right ahead struggling to survive. A minute was all it needed as the human lashed out in desperation.
It grabbed the human's weapon and threw the crowbar aside with the flip of a wrist. Then it grasped the human and lifted him into the air like he was a child. The lag time from the processors was significant as the less powerful secondary processors struggled to keep up with the demands of the primary systems. The system's efficiency got worse with each system that the repair program tackled. After a long moment the command appeared cam through. It was ordered to terminate. There was no reprieve from Skynet like the other human had received. The damaged infiltrator sent the commands to seal the fist and crush the human's neck, though there was lag time. Right as it began to close the machine was hit again and again by plasma bursts. When the one blast scored a direct hit to the shoulder assembly error messages flashed wildly. It lost its grip and the human fell like a rag doll to the floor.
The machine went to crush him but another impact from the plasma rifle knocked it off balance. The mighty Series Eight Hundred infiltrator, the Infiltration Prototype designed to lead Skynet's next generation of battle droids, fell to the floor with a loud crash. It had fallen and it couldn't get back up to its feet. It struggled and pushed, but it was futile. It repositioned its head to allow the sensors room to see what was going on around it. The helpless assassin watched as the duo of humans at the door's plasma pulses broke into its reinforced skeleton. It was helpless, unable to move, unable to defend itself from the enemy that it had never before feared and still didn't. A mixture of blood and oil from its body flowed like a river.
It called for Skynet, but Skynet didn't answer its pleas. The target, Kyle Reese, got to his feet and clutched at his neck right in front of the machine. The auditory scanners told the exposed endoskeleton that the human had been seriously injured, but there was nothing that the attacker could do about it. It listened to Kyle's rasping breaths as he struggled to get air and chastised itself for its failure. The human pulled the trigger of the once overheated plasma gun he'd used seconds earlier. Purple beams tore through the skull assembly and destroyed the processor chips. The infiltrator was dead and a human had killed it.
Had if been possible it would have hoped Skynet would forgive it for its failure, but even if it were possible it already knew the answer. Its vision faded to black.
Derek Reese watched as the machine struggled to stay upright after his onslaught. His attack had caused the infiltrator to lose its hold on Kyle and his younger brother, the man he swore to his father that he'd always protect, fell to the ground like a broken toy. Derek stared for him and knew that his flesh and blood was most likely dead. The metal bastard had to pay for what it'd done to him and his family. He repeatedly pulled the trigger – his shots backed up by similar beams of light from the rifle of Connor – and the machine continued to struggle.
"Die you goddamn metal bastard!" He screamed as he pulled the trigger again and again. Red blood mixed with oil that spread from the damaged torso assembly. A puddle of the strange combination spread out from the half exposed machine and engulfed Kyle as he lay on the ground. The cool combination caused him to stir. Derek looked over and felt his world brighten for the first time in what felt like his entire life as he watched his younger brother (Connor still fighting). Kyle's eyes opened and he was getting back up to his feet. Blood was dripping from his arm and he had the imprint of the machine's massive hand on his throat, but he was alive. That was all that mattered to Derek.
The rasping sound scared him though. To the older Reese it sounded like Kyle was Darth Vader from Star Wars. With every breath of fresh air the sound got worse and far from better, and then it still sounded like he wasn't even able to catch a single breath as he forced himself to walk. The younger Reese, the boy who Derek had protected for so long, walked up to the machine and put the gun equal with the machine's head. Half a dozen plasma pulses were flung from the futuristic weapon and burrowed deep into the skull of the killing machine. After the second shot the red eyes started to flicker. When they got to number three they went dark forever. Kyle pulled the trigger three more times until part of the combat chassis' skull had turned into liquid metal and was rolling into the cracks dug into the ground.
The older Reese ran over to support the younger one. Derek knew his brother than anyone and he knew that Kyle was in worse shape that he was leading on. He was having trouble standing, trouble breathing, trouble living. Yet, Kyle still didn't want any help. Kyle knocked his brother's hands away as Derek tried to support him. This frustrated Derek to no end. Why wouldn't his brother accept any help? He was so damn stubborn. Then, in spite of everything, he actually smiled. If he were in Kyle's position he wouldn't have accepted any help either. It was a dominance thing, a leadership thing, a show of strength. If you were the leader of the pack you'd never show weakness; it was the surest way to get attacked by the wolves.
"We need to get the hell out of here." John Connor said from near the door. "There're more machines coming."
"Is," Kyle rasped, "is everything… destroyed?"
John nodded, "Yeah. I blew the processors a few seconds ago and I burned all the documents that we got from your source. It's all gone."
"Are you sure? We can't let even," Kyle was trying to press home his point but his breaks in his voice were making him hard to understand. The strain was a lot on him.
"John got everything," Derek stepped in reassuring. "Everything from the mainframes to the files are gone. I saw him do it myself."
Kyle nodded after Derek repeated John's words, "Good. If Skynet would find out… find out that we had them…"
"With respect," Connor said forcefully at hearing his father's pain, "shut up. We can talk about this later. We have to go."
"You know how much I hate agreeing with him," Derek looked at John then turned back to his little brother, "but Connor's right and you need my help – so quit being so damned like me and let me help you."
The youngest of the Reese boys nodded and took a deep breath. He let it out after Derek's arm wrapped around his body and, for a moment, showed just how much he'd be hurt. It was only for a moment and not a second longer. The leader of the community looked into his brother's eyes. Even though he was hurt he was still trying to be Kyle, "I guess I should get a parka then."
"Why's that?"
John Connor looked down the corridor checking it for the tenth time to make sure that it was still clear. The machines were certainly in the base by now and there numbers were multiplying exponentially. The hallway was still clear though but it wouldn't be for long. Knowing that they were momentarily safe, from a certain point of view, he went to help his uncle and father out of the room. While John supported the other shoulder, Kyle finally answered Derek's part of the joke after catching his still raspy breath.
"Because hell froze over when you two finally agreed about something. Oh well at least I'll get to see snow again." He tried to laugh but felt only pain.
John helped him down the corridor and spoke the words his mother had told him as a child, "Pain can be controlled; you just have to disconnect it."
Kyle smiled and forced himself through it, "More words to live by from Sarah Connor?"
"The one and only," Connor answered brightly.
"But I'm sure it's hard to do without focusing on something," the oldest Reese boy handed the remains of the snapshot to his younger brother. "I'm afraid it got a little cooked back there, but Sarah's still there looking back at you." He never understood Kyle's fascination with the photo nor did he understand why John had ever given it to him, but Kyle's mood instantly brightened as he held the remnants of the photo in his hand.
With the support of his brother and, unbeknownst to him, his son, Kyle kept up with the two men on his own power. He gently ran his thumb over the charred remains of the photograph that meant so much to him as he walked down the stone corridor toward the escape hatch – his rifle in his other hand and ready if he needed it. He still spoke slowly and with the raspy voice, but he seemed brighter all the same. "She's my good luck charm and we need her now more than ever."
John nodded but didn't speak a word. His father's words of wisdom were definitely on the right track.
Gods Not Dead
|August 12 2009, 10:43 PM
Location: Aboard the Executor...
Re: The Terminator Chronicles: Second Chance
Chapter 4:
Pages: 9
Words: 4,868
Gods Not Dead
|August 13 2009, 01:48 AM
Fleet Captain
Location: Sector 001
Re: The Terminator Chronicles: Second Chance
|August 13 2009, 08:16 AM
Location: Aboard the Executor...
Re: The Terminator Chronicles: Second Chance
So many questions that I'm looking forward to tackling. There were a hell of a lot of questions which included:
1.) What happened to Danny Dyson?
2.) What happened to James Ellison and Savannah Weaver?
3.) Is Sarah Connor still alive?
4.) Just how did John intend to save Cameron?
5.) Who's side was Cameron on?
6.) What were Future John's orders?
7.) What happened to the T-1001?
8.) What happened to John Henry?
Gods Not Dead
|August 13 2009, 12:43 PM
Fleet Captain
Location: Im in ur Tardis, violating ur canon.
Re: The Terminator Chronicles: Second Chance
|cameron, derek reese, john connor, kyle reese, terminator
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›› Archive photos: Gandara family of Socorro
Guillermo "Willie" Gandara Sr., once the proud patriarch of what was dubbed Socorro's own "political dynasty," stood before a federal judge in El Paso on Monday, a defeated man without his usual spark.
Between sobs and hunched over a courtroom podium, Gandara admitted that as president of the Socorro Independent School District's Board of Trustees in 2005, he made an agreement with another trustee. Gandara agreed to vote for district contracts with companies the other trustee, Raymundo "Ray" Rodriguez, sought to help in exchange for Rodriguez's vote on companies Gandara approved.
"Yes," Gandara tearfully replied after his attorney, Jim Darnell, asked if he expected anything from Rodriguez in return for his vote for Access HealthSource, the company at the heart of a 2010 federal indictment charging Rodriguez, Gandara and nine other public officials on public corruption charges.
Gandara pleaded guilty Monday to a charge of aiding and abetting wire fraud and the deprivation of wire fraud and faces a 3 year prison sentence.
He and Rodriguez, who also pleaded guilty, are scheduled to be sentenced in November.
Gandara's last-minute plea deal was the latest blow to the once-prominent Gandara family.
Gandara, 63, owned two successful metal recycling businesses in Socorro and served 10 years in school politics. In May 2010, he was elected mayor of Socorro but after his public corruption indictment, voters successfully sought to recall him from office.
The Gandara family had humble beginnings. According to a 2010 interview with the El Paso Times, Gandara was born and raised in the San Juan neighborhood of South-Central El Paso. He served in the Army before moving to the Socorro area in 1974 with his wife, Grace, and their newborn son, Guillermo "Willie" Gandara Jr.
Gandara Sr. and his wife had three more children: Gary, Teresa and Gillian. The Gandara children attended Socorro High School.
Soon after the family's move to Socorro in 1974, Gandara Sr. started a junkyard that later became two businesses, Socorro Iron Metals and Gandara Recycling.
Three decades later, the family businesses became so successful the Gandara family was able to buy a small ranch on Coker Road in Socorro and a house in Ruidoso. Gandara Sr. still drives a black 2009 Mercedes sedan, while some of his children drove Hummers and other expensive vehicles.
Several members of the Gandara family also became involved in politics. In the late 1990s, Gandara Sr. was elected to the Socorro school district's board of trustees. In 2004, Gandara Jr. was elected mayor of Socorro and later ran successfully for a spot on the El Paso County Commissioners Court.
And in 2009, Gary Gandara, himself a former Socorro City Council member, was voted onto the Socorro school board. His current term expires in 2017.
"I wish everybody had a family like mine," Gandara Sr. told the El Paso Times in 2010. "Los quiero como a nadie." (I love them like no one else.)
But after years of struggle and success came the fall.
In 2011, Gandara Sr. became the first El Paso County official to be ousted from office in a recall election.
In February 2012, Gandara Jr., learned he was facing his own criminal charges in an unrelated federal drug trafficking case.
Prosecutors alleged Gandara Jr., nicknamed "The Godfather," ran a drug pipeline from El Paso County to Oklahoma and Chicago. About six months after his arrest, Gandara Jr. pleaded guilty to charges he distributed nearly 124 pounds of marijuana from his property on Coker Road. The drugs were found by federal agents at the Sierra Blanca checkpoint, hidden in boxes of powdered chile inside of a tractor-trailer.
Prosecutors had also alleged Gandara Jr. agreed to help a confidential undercover informant working for the Drug Enforcement Administration by letting the informant use the Coker Road property to load drugs in exchange for $5,000. The deal was caught on a hidden camera the informant was wearing.
During Gandara Jr.'s sentencing hearing in November, U.S. District Judge Frank Montalvo compared Gandara Jr. to infamous Columbian drug lord Pablo Escobar, after Gandara Jr.'s attorney, Joe Spencer, said that Gandara Jr. often donated his paychecks during his term as El Paso County Commissioner to benefit Socorro.
Gandara Jr. is now serving 6 years in a federal prison.
And a third Gandara family member, Jesus "Jesse" Gandara Jr., a former Socorro city representative and mayor pro tem who used to vote against his uncle when the two were on City Council, is facing legal problems as well.
In March, Jesse Gandara was arrested on charges of misapplication of fiduciary property or property of a financial institution, and theft of property over $1,500/under $20,000. He and Socorro police Sgt. Refugio Orta are accused of improperly seeking reimbursement for tips taken between June 2011 and January 2012.
About a month later, El Paso County sheriff's deputies searching Jesse Gandara's home allegedly found less than 2 ounces of marijuana, along with apparently neglected chickens and a dog. Deputies arrested Gandara following the search, and misdemeanor pot possession and animal cruelty charges are still pending against him.
The same day, a state district judge removed Jesse Gandara and Guillermo "Willie" Madrid Jr. from the Socorro City Council after ruling that the council had illegally extended council members' terms in 2011. In May, Jesse Gandara lost his bid to regain his Socorro city council seat.
And on July 1, deputies arrested Jesse Gandara after a state district court grand jury indicted him on charges he allegedly made an offer of a $40,000 advertising campaign to the manager of the Licon Dairy in San Elizario, in exchange for the dairy's support of Socorro's controversial plan to annex a part of San Elizario.
His trial dates are pending in the 210th District Court.
Jesse Gandara has claimed the charges against him are a result of a vendetta against him by the sheriff's office. In March 2011, Jesse Gandara filed a complaint with the Socorro Police Department alleging a sheriff's detective grabbed his hands as Jesse Gandara videotapes sheriff's investigators, who were at Jesse Gandara's home investigating driveways being built at selected homes in Socorro.
A fourth Gandara family member, Jesus Gandara Sr., is facing legal problems in California. In 2012, Jesus Gandara, the former superintendent of Sweetwater Union High School in California, was charged with perjury, bribery, and other charges by the San Diego District Attorney. His case is pending, and all of the charges are related to the work he did as superintendent of the school district outside San Diego.
Jesus Gandara Sr., is Jesse Gandara's father and the brother of Wille Gandara Sr.
None of the Gandara's could be reached for comment.
"You always heard whispers that they weren't great people, so I never really had an opinion of them," said current Socorro Mayor Jesus Ruiz, who was voted into office in May. "I always had a cautious view of them. When I got into politics, I knew they were not to be trusted."
"They never change," former Socorro Mayor Trini Lopez said with a chuckle.
Lopez was defeated by Willie Gandara Sr. for the mayorship in 2010. Lopez admits he was once a Gandara family admirer, at times advising them politically.
Things changed in 2006 when Willie Gandara Jr. announced he would run against Chente Quintanilla in the Texas House District 75 race. And tensions became more heated when Gandara Sr. was recalled in 2010, and Jesse Gandara became mayor pro tem.
"They created a lot of enemies based on their actions," Lopez said. "They were united, but they had a strong majority. They thought they could do whatever they want, but that's not right. You have to go by the law."
Along with the controversial driveways project came other costly plans, including a new $1 million community center and the $3.5 million Bulldog Championship Park, which features sports fields and a pond with a fountain.
However, Lopez said, the Gandaras and their supporters on City Council didn't plan for future expansion in Socorro, preferring to think more about what would get them reelected.
"They were doing it on their own," Lopez said. "They were not including the planning and zoning commission, not including the planning and zoning director, not including the people. Everything was done on their own criteria based on their own ideas."
Because Lopez was so strongly opposed to the park's costs, his name is not on the park's plaque, which lists the members of City Council at the time the park was approved.
"I never said anything about it," Lopez said with a smile. "It doesn't bother me."
The continuing tensions between Jesse Gandara and his supporters on council and constituents who no longer wanted them in office inspired Ruiz, 24, to run for mayor. In May, Ruiz and two city council candidates, Joseph "Chito" Bowling and Rene Rodriguez, won the Socorro elections, with Bowling and Rodriguez defeating Jesse Gandara and Guillermo "Willie" Madrid Jr.
"We needed elected leaders who were responsible, who were ethical, who would respond to the needs of the constituents," said Ruiz, who is considered to be the fifth youngest mayor in Texas history. "I think people were just tired with the way things were run in Socorro and were just fed up with the Gandara politics."
Ruiz said he and the rest of City Council made sweeping changes after taking office, among them: council members can no longer use the city's video footage of council meetings and post them anywhere online except on the city's website (Jesse Gandara was known to do this on his own YouTube channel); public comment is allowed at all meetings, not just special meetings; council members removed the city's public information officer position, which had a salary of $62,000 a year, and fired spokesman Dave Garcia; the city's controversial driveways program was discontinued after officials discovered driveways were approved based on whether they consistently voted for the Gandaras; and the city's attorney, Jerry Wallace, was given a 60-day termination notice.
Ruiz said he also renamed several streets in a new Socorro subdivision. Those streets, once named after Socorro city council members and other local political figures, including Jesse Gandara, are now named after flowers.
City officials still have obstacles ahead of them. The city is in debt after previous city council members approved the issuance of $5 million in certificates of obligation, then spent the money in a year.
"We have the November election coming up, so hopefully we'll continue making changes and moving forward," Ruiz said.
Adriana M. Chávez may be reached at 546-6117.

subset: commoncrawl


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- Filed Under
University of Southern Mississippi Professor Emeritus Dr. Kenneth G. McCarty, Jr. is the winner of the 2013 Dunbar Rowland Award.
The award is presented for his lifelong contributions to the preservation, study, and interpretation of Mississippi history.
McCarty was recognized at the Mississippi Historical Society's annual meeting in Vicksburg, February 28-March 2. ...


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All scout have to lay down on the ground next to each other in line and look all to the right side. They hold their head with their hand. The first one ask his neighbour "Are you ready?" and this scout continues asking till the last person. The last person says"Not yet". And again the message goes through the line. After seconds the question "Are you ready ?" goes along the line again. And once again he says"Not yet". Repeat that two times. At the last time the one person answers"Yes" and all of them turn just to the other side.
a couple scouts
Skit ContributorAndreas Schellmann
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|Effect of midfacial distraction on the obstructed airway in patients with syndromic bilateral coronal synostosis.
MedLine Citation:
|PMID: 18940499 Owner: NLM Status: MEDLINE
|PURPOSE: Le Fort III osteotomy and midfacial advancement expand the nasopharynx and potentially increase airway dimensions in patients with syndromic bilateral coronal synostosis. Distraction osteogenesis allows greater midfacial advancement, and may offer more improvement in airway obstruction, compared with the conventional 1-stage procedure. This study aimed to document the effect of midfacial distraction-advancement on airway obstruction in patients with syndromic bilateral coronal synostosis. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Charts of patients with syndromic bilateral coronal synostosis who had undergone Le Fort III distraction were reviewed. Preoperative and postoperative demographic, cephalometric, polysomnographic, and subjective patient/parental reported data were reviewed. Descriptive and nonparametric bivariate statistics were computed, to document changes in airway parameters. RESULTS: Of 25 patients who underwent midfacial Le Fort III distraction, only 18 had preoperative airway obstruction. The mean age at operation for patients with airway obstruction was (+/-SD) 10.4 +/- 4.2 years (range, 2.7 to 17.4 years), and the average advancement was 20.5 +/- 7.4 mm (range, 10 to 30 mm). Five of 6 patients with a tracheostomy were decannulated; 1 patient had persistent central apnea that prevented decannulation. The mean respiratory distress index for the group improved from 33.4 +/- 37.57 (range, 1.8 to 109.2) to 12.6 +/- 26.32 (range, 0.00 to 72.0) (P < .05). Six of 9 patients no longer required continuous or bilevel positive airway pressure. All patients reported decreased snoring (P < .05). CONCLUSIONS: Midfacial distraction improves airway obstruction in patients with syndromic bilateral coronal synostosis. Clinicians can counsel patients and families that this procedure usually permits decannulation and discontinuation of continuous or bilevel positive airway pressure.
|Tyler E Nelson; John B Mulliken; Bonnie L Padwa
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Publication Detail:
|Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Journal Detail:
|Title: Journal of oral and maxillofacial surgery : official journal of the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons Volume: 66 ISSN: 1531-5053 ISO Abbreviation: J. Oral Maxillofac. Surg. Publication Date: 2008 Nov
Date Detail:
|Created Date: 2008-10-22 Completed Date: 2008-11-03 Revised Date: -
Medline Journal Info:
|Nlm Unique ID: 8206428 Medline TA: J Oral Maxillofac Surg Country: United States
Other Details:
|Languages: eng Pagination: 2318-21 Citation Subset: AIM; D; IM
|Harvard School of Dental Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
Export Citation:
|APA/MLA Format Download EndNote Download BibTex
|MeSH Terms
Airway Obstruction / surgery*
Child, Preschool
Craniosynostoses / surgery*
Facial Bones / surgery*
Frontal Bone / surgery
Maxilla / surgery
Nasopharynx / pathology
Osteogenesis, Distraction*
Osteotomy, Le Fort
Retrospective Studies
Sleep Apnea, Obstructive / surgery
Treatment Outcome
Zygoma / surgery
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine
Previous Document: Autogenous transplantation of maxillary and mandibular molars.
Next Document: Zygomatic arch deformation: an anatomic and clinical study.


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When you join our company with contact services, you will be joining a team of people passionate about the call centre industry and passionate about exceeding our client's expectations. We work hard… but we also have fun doing it!
You will have an opportunity to work with some incredibly exciting, and interesting clients, providing traditional inbound and outbound call centre services. We have partnered with some well-known organizations and are extremely proud of the work we do!
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Use the Job Search to search current job openings. You can search for your particular job by type, location, or job category.
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The move came despite many of the board's 15 members bristling at having to scrap the state's algebra II mandate, which was a hotly debated part of a sweeping education law overwhelmingly approved by lawmakers in May. The overhaul was designed to give schools and students more flexibility to focus on vocational training for high-paying jobs that don't necessarily require a college degree.
"We've got a piece of legislation that we've got to put some lipstick on," Republican board member David Bradley said.
The changes—poised to transform classrooms for the state's 5 million-plus public school students—still allow school districts to require algebra II, it's just no longer a state mandate. The law also cut the number of standardized tests in high schools from 15 to five.
The board voted 13-2 on Thursday to create two high-level math courses that could be alternatives: statistics and algebraic reasoning. Both will be developed by local schools under the guidance of the Texas Education Agency, and are designed to cover many of the same concepts covered in algebra II.
Board members must cast a final vote Friday to formally implement the new graduation standards, which are set to take effect next fall.
Creating the new courses was necessary because, in November, the board complied with the Legislature and voted to drop the algebra II graduation requirement for most students. Only those pursuing honors diplomas or focusing on coursework in math and science will still have to pass the course.
But in many school districts, especially smaller ones, students would have ended up taking algebra II anyway because they are still required to take math as part of their normal coursework and there aren't many alternative classes offered. Now, they will have more options.
"I think we've reached a compromise that everyone can be comfortable with," said Sue Melton-Malone, R-Waco.
Algebra II has been a hot-button issue for months—especially since Texas was the first state to require the course for most students in 2006. Since then, 16 other states and the District of Columbia have imposed similar algebra II mandates.
Board of Education member Lawrence Allen, a Democrat from Fresno, estimated that 60 or 70 percent of Texas students would still take algebra II under the new curriculum. He said students who don't take the class will now have a chance to master many of the same mathematical and problem-solving concepts, however.
But fellow Democrat Ruben Cortez of Brownsville described the algebraic reasoning course as "watered-down algebra II."
Martha Dominguez, a Democrat from El Paso, said that without proper guidance, many students, particularly minorities, may not challenge themselves and therefore wouldn't be properly prepared for college or life beyond it when they would have otherwise succeeded.
"We're not doing what's in the best interest of our students," Dominguez said.
Bradley, the Republican board member from Beaumont, emphasized that the board's hands were tied because the curriculum shakeup was now state law. But he said opponents were focusing too much on the course.
"Algebra II's becoming the whipping boy," Bradley said. "I walk out there in the community and I don't see any kids walking around brain dead and maimed and mangled because they had to take algebra II."


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The CAPTE Accreditation Portal allows for the electronic submission of program documents. Since the Portal contains confidential program information, access is allowed only with the username and password provided to the program director. Programs can review and edit the narrative components of their listing in the Directory of Accredited Programs, check contact information and submit reports (Annual Accreditation Report, Self-Study Report).
Accreditation HandbookProvides the rules of procedure by which CAPTE operates, including among other items:
Access additional information regarding the 'On-Site Visit' process including the sample schedule (.pdf).
Annual Accreditation Report (AAR)Data about accredited programs is collected annually in the AAR and is used to develop Aggregate Program Data (fact sheets) and to monitor compliance with the Evaluative Criteria. The next AAR is due December 1.
Aggregate Program DataIncludes demographic information accredited PT and PTA education programs and the numbers of accredited and developing programs.
Additional ResourcesA list of useful CAPTE and APTA documents is provided, along with related webpages.
PT Standards and Required Elements (.pdf ) [effective January 1, 2016]
PTA Standards and Required Elements (.pdf ) [effective January 1, 2016]
PT and PTA Instructions and Forms (.doc)
Programs submit a Self-study Report and host an on-site visit as part of the accreditation review. Current documents, including access to CAPTE Accreditation Portal documents, are provided to the program director in January in the year preceding the visit. CAPTE holds meetings twice a year to review programs.
APTA's Accreditation Department holds self-study workshops 3 times a year. These workshops are held to discuss CAPTE's expectations for specific criteria as well as to address general accreditation and self-study processes.
A list of educational consultants, if desired, can be obtained from Jody Frost, APTA Director of Academic/Clinical Education Affairs.
Upcoming CAPTE Meetings
Upcoming On-site & Candidacy Visits
Please contact Department of Accreditation staff if you are interested in becoming an on-site reviewer or you would like to nominate someone as an on-site reviewer.
Programs can submit changes to their listing in the Directory of Accredited Programs through the CAPTE Accreditation Portal.
American Physical Therapy Association | 1111 North Fairfax Street, Alexandria, VA 22314-1488 703/684-APTA (2782) | 800/999-2782 | 703/684-7343 (fax)
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Tag Archives: Green River
The Green River Below Flaming Gorge – What We All Stand To Lose
We love the opportunity to fish the Green. When we heard about what could potentially happen below the gorge, to one of our favorite places, well, we had to help get the word out. So what's going on at the … Continue reading


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MLB completes outfitting two stadiums with iBeacon technology
updated 01:06 pm EST, Fri February 14, 2014
Los Angeles, San Diego first non-test deployments
Major League Baseball has completed its first post-test iBeacon deployments at two stadiums, according to an announcement. 65 iBeacons have been put in place at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, and Petco Park, the home of the San Diego Padres. The league says that plans are underway to have over 20 parks outfitted by Opening Day; the main reason for the initial two stadiums is that the Padres are hosting the Dodgers on March 30th.
To make use of the iBeacons, stadium visitors must have an iOS device compatible with Bluetooth Low Energy -- which includes most recent devices -- as well as iOS 7 and the MLB's At the Ballpark app. The league is waiting until March to say what kinds of notifications people will receive, but these are expected to include things like points of interest and ongoing sales. The organization adds that a third-party vendor manufactured the beacons, tailoring them to Apple's specifications.


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theres not really a set scheme to it, just do ya thing :) in theory there 7 diffrent pieces been showcased to show the diversity and diffrent styles...
20-40 ?
Separate names with a comma.


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Our regular business hours are:
Monday - Saturday: 10:00 am to 5:30 pm
If you would like to make a special appointment to view the gallery or need to come after our regular hours, you might be in luck! We also live here. Please call us and we will let you know what we can do to accommodate you. 601-856-4985
Robert & Merry Pickenpaugh are the owners, founders and original potters of Pickenpaugh Pottery located in Madison, Mississippi.


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Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., joined at right by Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., talks to reporters Thursday about the final work of the Senate as their legislative year nears to a close, at the Capitol in Washington. The Senate voted overwhelmingly late Thursday night to approve the defense authorization act, an 84-15 vote that paves the way for troops to receive a 1 percent raise beginning Jan. 1. (J. Scott Applewhite / AP)
- Filed Under
The Senate voted overwhelmingly late Thursday night to approve the defense authorization act, an 84-15 vote that paves the way for troops to receive a 1 percent raise beginning Jan. 1.
The $632.8 billion bill bill extends a number of expiring special pays and bonuses that would otherwise have ended on New Years Day and also includes prohibitions against any fee increases for Tricare or new user fees for the military health program by more than 1.7 percent next October.
Among the bills key provisions are a restriction on the Defense Department from transferring to the U.S. anyone held as a suspected terrorist at the Navy detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, as well as allowances for detainees to be transferred under some circumstances to foreign countries.
The bill also includes about 30 provisions related to sexual assault in the military, including removing the authority of commanders to dismiss a court-martial finding, eliminating the current five-year statute of limitations on rape and sexual assault and establishing minimum sentencing guidelines for sex crimes.
There also are several provisions aimed at protecting victims of rape and sexual assault, including allowing victims to apply for a transfer to a new unit or a new base and creating a specific criminal charge in the military justice system for retaliating against a victim who comes forward.
Other adds include a provision to overhaul the militarys Article 32 process of pretrial hearings to expand rights of sexual assault victims and to reduce consideration of the military record of the accused as a reason not to press charges.
The bill also gives 171,000 military retirees and family members forced from Tricare Prime on Oct. 1, the option to return to the program if they choose.
And it changes eligibility rules for selective early retirement boards so that officers passed over just one time for promotion to O-6 would be considered by selection boards for involuntary retirement.
Notably, the bill contains no provisions for a military pay raise, setting up enactment of a presidential order issued in August that decided troops would receive a 1 percent raise.
The absence of any specific pay raise language paves the way for execution of the executive order capping next years increase at 1 percent.
Under a federal pay formula that remains part of permanent law, service members would have been due a 1.8 percent pay increase, and the House had approved that percent raise as part of its version of the bill approved in June.
But the Senate Armed Services Committee backed the White House proposal, and the compromise to remain silent on the issue in the compromise version left the decision to the administration.
In a letter to Congress in August, President Obama said he is strongly committed to supporting our uniformed service members, who have made such great contributions to our nation over the past decade of war.
But, he noted, the U.S. is recovering from serious economic conditions affecting the general welfare that require tough decisions to stay on a sustainable fiscal course.
The White House issued a statement Thursday before the Senate vote indicating it will support the bill as written. Singling out issues including the transfer of Guantanamo detainees and changes to military sexual assault prosecution and protection, administration officials said they were pleased with the modifications and improvements that addressed their objections to earlier iterations of the legislation.
Although the bill includes a number of provisions that restrict or limit the Defense Departments ability to align military capabilities and force structure with the President's strategy and implement certain efficiencies ... the Administration supports passage of the legislation, the White House according to the White House statement.
The bill, H.R. 3304, provides $552.1 billion for the military budget and $80.7 billion for overseas contingency operations.
It passed the House last week, 332-94.
Bill negotiator Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman, described the bipartisan legislation as good for national security as well as for the men and women of the armed forces.
This bill ensures that important pay and benefits, including combat pay, will continue; includes powerful and important new tools in our fight against military sexual assault; and makes progress toward the day we can close the detention camp at Guantanamo Bay, Levin said.
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- Filed Under
St. Clair swimmer Meghan Lamb qualfiied for the 100 breaststroke (1:13.63) Thursday at a last chance meet a L'Anse Creuse North High School.
It was the fifth event Lamb has qualified for in the Division 3 state meet, which will be held Nov. 16-17 at Eastern Michigan University.
"She did an excellent job," St. Clair coach Carol Seaman said. "We knew she could make it and we wanted to give her another chance."
The St. Clair County Community College women's basketball team opened the season Thursday with a 84-45 victory at home against the Rochester College junior varsity team.
Sheyna Deans led the Skippers with 17 points and four steals. Heidi Highstreet of Algonac added 15 points. Rachel Kehoe of St. Clair had 10 points and six rebounds, Cianna Peterson had 12 points and Teisha Knott had 10 points and six rebounds.
SC4 (1-0) will return home at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday against Lambton Community College.


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Lindsey Little
Mexico City Bans Use of Wild Animals in Circus Acts
On Monday, Mexico City voted to ban the use of animals in circuses. They have one year to remove animals from their acts or face fines of $45,000 – $60,000.
Virgin Stakeholder Meeting Tackles Cetaceans in Tourism
Virgin Holidays and Virgin Unite held a stakeholder meeting in Miami to discuss the complexities of captive cetaceans in tourism.
Jennifer Lopez Explains Why She Briefly Went Vegan
Many women want to know how Jennifer Lopez maintains her amazing figure. Though she believes in eating everything in moderation, the 44-year-old singer revealed to Michael Strahan in an interview
WATCH: Obama Wants to Clean Up Planet for Kid's Health
Obama seeks to limit carbon pollution from existing power plants as a way to improve the health and well-being of children.
WATCH: Seth Macfarlane Does His Part to Keep Animals Safe on Set
One thing "Family Guy" creator Seth Macfarlane doesn't joke around about is the mistreatment of animals on movie sets. In a recent PETA interview, the funnyman shared his thoughts on
Adrian Grenier to Produce Documentary About a Lonely Whale
Entourage star Adrian Grenier will co-produce Joshua Zeman's newest documentary, 52: The Search for the Loneliest Whale in the World. "I'm honored to be part of the Worldview and Alldayeveryday
UN Expert: Unhealthy Diets Pose Greater Health Risk Than Smoking
Unhealthy foods, such as processed foods high in saturated fat and sugar, pose a greater threat to global health than tobacco products. The sale of tobacco has become highly regulated


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In this undated photo provided by Robin Young, Dzhokhar A. Tsarnaev poses for a photo after graduating from Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School.
- Filed Under
A small but vocal chorus of young people, many of them female, are filling social-media sites with claims that the two brothers accused in the Boston Marathon bombings are innocent and have been unjustly accused, even "set up."
In defense of 19-year-old Dzhokhar Tsarnaev (identified as Jahar on his Twitter account) sympathizers have taken to the Internet to proclaim their support. On Twitter, they post with hashtags including JaharisInnocent; fightforJahar; freejahar; and FreeTheLion. More than 6,600 visitors on Facebook have "liked" The Dzhokhar Tsarnaev Free Jahar movement.
Some ...