Cameron's Treasures – Part I
Disclaimer: Don't own TSCC
These stories are set in the timeline of my other TSCC stories and take place during CameronGrows Up, The Future Cameron and Cameron's Revenge. Characters from the original TSCC story arc and Cameron Grows Up as well as The Future Cameron and Cameron's Revenge appear in these stories.
Cameron's Treasures is set after Cameron versus the Queen and before Cameron's Revenge. Ruth and Hailey have just started middle school.
The Wastelands – North of TechCom City…
"I do not think it is wise for you to recon on your own."
"Wilhelm, I appreciate your concern. I operated on my own before you were assembled. I will be fine."
The Major stared at Cameron for a moment before replying.
"If something happens to you, the General will have me melted down."
"No he won't. John knows how stubborn I am. We will cover more territory this way. We cannot afford any more surprises from groups we know nothing about. Besides, Catherine's scroungers need new sources."
The huge T-800 shook his head in frustration. Lt. Dan smiled at the exchange, enjoying watching two equally stubborn Terminators disagree could be amusing. For a while. The human officer knew the two would go round in circles until something prompted Cameron to pull rank.
"Commander?"
Cameron broke her stare to look at the young officer.
"Should I order the scouts to pitch camp again?"
"Why?"
"If we are not going to depart now, the human personnel should take shelter from the cold and rain."
"Wilhelm?"
"Very well, Commander," the T-800 replied, focusing his frustration on his XO.
"We will meet at these coordinates in 96 hours."
Wilhelm and the Assassin both nodded in agreement, setting the time on their internal chronometers. The human officers present set their watches.
Within minutes the two other groups had vanished into the darkness of the Wastelands, leaving Cameron alone. Wilhelm and his squad of airborne troops headed to the Northwest, in the direction of the Northerner's kingdom. The Assassin and his small group of human scouts headed to the Northeast, in the direction of the Sierra Nevada foothills.
Cameron began walking due North.
TechCom City – The Connor Family Bunker…
Being alone was not high on Hailey Connor's list of things to do. Being in her room alone was fine. Being home alone was not. Even her dogs were gone, spending the day at the TechCom vet facility. Ruth was at school. John, Derek and Sarah were on duty. The Old Man was in his alcove in the tunnel.
John had looked at Hailey funny when she complained of feeling achy that morning. She had not counted on his response. He'd stayed home while the Old Man took Ruth to school and then reported for duty. The Old Man was ordered to return home and maintain his vigil from his alcove. Agent Ellison would escort Ruth home from.
Boredom set in within ten minutes of her father leaving the bunker. Ruth was at school. The girl's dogs were at the vet. The Old Man was in his alcove and Hailey did not want to risk a scan from her T-600 protector.
"What good is it if Mom's away and I play hooky from school and there is nothing to do?" she muttered aloud in frustration to nobody. "Dad can't scan me. But do I get to do anything fun? Noooooo. It's not fair."
The absence of her mother's morning health scan had been the inspiration for Hailey's planned day of fun while ditching school. It never occurred to Hailey John was a past master of skipping school and all manner of methods kids used to avoid school.
Hailey stared at the walls of the bunker for a good half hour. Every time Hailey checked the digital clock her mother kept in the dining area for the benefit of John and Hailey, it seemed the clock was standing still.
"I have to find something to do," she moaned. Thirty minutes later Hailey had finished cleaning and organizing her room, a task she avoided as often as possible. Another half hour passed and the entire bunker had been swept and vacuumed.
All except for her parent's bedroom.
It took her five minutes of staring at the door of her parent's room before Hailey worked up the courage to enter.
She'd been in their room more times than she could remember, but always with permission or when one of her parents was present. Hailey stood in the doorway and looked at the unmade bed.
"Mom would skin you Dad," Hailey said smiling at the secret knowledge that her father liked to slack off too when Cameron was gone. It took less than ten minutes to sweep and vacuum the room. Hailey decided to wash the dirty clothes, a task she hated and had recently been assigned by her mother.
A quick sort of her parents laundry and her own and Hailey had the first load of clothes running in the old, beat up washer. Cameron had repaired and modified the machine that now operated better than when first manufactured. Hailey held up a pair of her mother's purple lace panties, holding the garment between her thumb and forefinger and shook her head in disgust. Hailey dropped the panties in the laundry bag her mother used for "delicates" and fished through the dirty clothes for more of the same.
Finding several more pairs of lace panties and matching bras, Hailey tossed them in the bag, zipped it up and shook her head in disgust while making a face. It was bad enough realizing her parents had sex, but so long as it was an abstract concept and she didn't think about it, the idea didn't bother Hailey.
Finding evidence of her mother's tools to seduce her father was a hideous reminder to Hailey of what went on with her a mere dozen feet away in her room. "At least I'm safe in my room," she muttered, dropping the bag on top of the sorted dirty clothes.
Returning to the bedroom, Hailey looked about for anything else to do. She decided to try to earn brownie points with John so she could con her way to freedom when he got home, claiming she felt fine. She could truthfully claim she was so bored she cleaned the bunker.
Making the Queen-sized bed was a bit of a struggle for Hailey. Getting the sheets pulled tight and smooth required going from side to side as did the blankets. As she pulled the heavy comforter over the blankets, Hailey's toe struck an object under the bed on Cameron's side. She finished making the bed and raised the comforter, taking a peak underneath.
Spotting an old, battered cigar box, Hailey fished it out. Carrying it out to the dining area, she sat down at the family table, setting the box down in front of her. While tattered and scratched, the box was completely clean. As if someone took the trouble to wipe it off on a regular basis.
"What have we here," Hailey whispered.
The Wastelands North of TechCom City…
Cameron enjoyed traveling by herself, covering the miles rapidly. Initially not desirous to leave her John alone, he'd convinced her it would be safer for him and all of TechCom in the long run if she went on the scouting patrol. Now that she was alone and moving quickly through the unexplored Wastelands, Cameron was enjoying herself. Pausing to record map coordinates for her report, Cameron reviewed the file on the conversation with her John.
"Information is a weapon. You know that Cameron. You're the best infiltrator I have. Wilhelm and the Assassin can only cover so much ground, even with their human scouts. We have got to have a better idea of what is out there."
"I won't be here to protect you," she protested.
"Cameron, we're not in a shooting war right now. Nor do I want to be surprised by another group out there somewhere and wind up in one. We know there are more Skynet regions. Suppose there are more city-states like the Northerner Kingdom?"
"I won't be here to protect you," she repeated.
"Catherine's scroungers need new territory. Every week we have more Tunnel Rats seeking sanctuary. John Henry is always needing this or that for some project."
Her next protest had been silent. Cameron had simply glared at her husband.
"That won't work," he replied, smiling. "Besides, the Old Man will keep an eye on me. If it would make you feel better, Hailey can sleep over with Ruth and I'll crash in Mom and Derek's bunker."
"Promise?"
"I promise."
Staring out into the devastation that had been a forest, Cameron had her doubts that John would actually sleep in his mother's bunker. Hailey would be happy to sleep over with Ruth's. The Old Man had promised he would keep an eye on the General. It was a promise Cameron intended to hold him to.
As she covered more ground, Cameron began to notice signs of plant life. Not much, but some, lichen and a few scattered weeds among the decaying logs of the destroyed forest. Scanning the area around her, Cameron discovered the range of light penetrating the thick cloud cover was broader than what was normal further south. She noted the atmosphere contained less particulate, allowing more of the sun's light to find a way through the clouds, even if it wasn't in the visible spectrum.
This was an important discovery. John Henry would send some of his scientists as soon as possible after she reported her find. Stopping to conduct another scan to collect data, Cameron noticed the dead forest would make an excellent background for one of the terrible, low budget horror films her John loved to make her watch with him. As she viewed the forest with her infrared night vision, Cameron found herself a little creeped out by the forest.
Annoyed, Cameron shrugged off the strange sensation. Terminators do not fear imaginary creatures or imagined haunted forests, she told herself. You just miss your John, your family. That's all it is.
With increased speed, Cameron left the area, moving further north. Cresting a ridge, she spotted a two-lane road in the distance. Adjusting her path slightly, Cameron traveled in the direction of the road. Within minutes she reached the cracked asphalt and stopped to scan the area for threats.
After noting the coordinates for future explorers from TechCom, Cameron took advantage of the road and began jogging to the north. After an hour of constant jogging, the road broadened into a divided boulevard, indicating a populated area was nearby. Cameron slowed to a walk, scanning the area for signs of human or machine life.
Buildings began to appear as she continued her approach. Some were burned out shells and other's looked undamaged. Some looked worse for the wear as she traveled, the result of no maintenance having been done since Judgment Day. The buildings grew closer and closer as she traveled. Apartments and entrances to neighborhoods began to crop up, indicating she was approaching a town of some size.
Cameron decided to stop for a period of time. She'd promised John to engage in some form of modified maintenance mode while gone and the discovery of the town would provide cover. Stopping would also allow her to hide and listen and scan for movement around her location. Picking an abandoned house on top of a hillside, Cameron entered through a broken window. A quick search assured her the house had been empty for years and nobody had entered for most of that time.
Taking up position in the shadows of the living room while facing the front entranceway, Cameron adjusted her sensors to record while she shut down for maintenance. She adjusted her protocols for alerting her to possible danger to more sensitive levels and began the shutdown process.
Her last thought had been to view a digital image of John holding Hailey in his lap.
TechCom City – The Connor Family Bunker…
It had taken her nearly ten minutes to work up the nerve, but Hailey finally opened the box. It did not contain much.
Sitting in the box were three tiny black boxes covered in a smooth, black material Hailey believed was called velvet. Removing each of the boxes one at a time, Hailey first shook each box, listening for any sound, setting each box on the table after she did so.
Failing to hear anything, Hailey decided to sniff each of the boxes. With still no idea of what the boxes contained, her curiosity got the better of her. Hailey opened the first of the boxes. It contained a simple, slender gold ring. It took a moment for Hailey to recognize it.
"Mom's wedding band," she whispered, closing the box. Hurriedly, Hailey opened the next one, discovering her mother's purple amethyst earrings. Pausing a moment, Hailey starred at the final unopened box before lifting its top half.
"Mom's engagement ring."
Hailey carefully slipped the ring from its protective box and carefully put it on her own left ring finger. Too big to fit properly, the weight of the ring's stone caused it to turn upside down, hiding the gem from sight.
Turing the ring back around, Hailey closed her fingers, preventing the ring from moving. Holding her hand up in the light, Hailey looked at the ring, noticing the way the purple diamond shown in the light. Guilt ran through Hailey and she quickly removed the ring, returning it to the safety of its box. Closing all three of the boxes, Hailey set them in a row and looked at them.
"Mom's treasures," she said to herself.
Lifting the lid to the box a second time, Hailey looked to see what other treasures her mother kept hidden away.
The Wastelands…
Two hours passed and Cameron's internal chronometer woke her. She spent fifteen minutes exploring the abandoned house. Finding no signs of violence or human remains, Cameron wondered why the house was abandoned. Signs of occasional visitors were evident. The kitchen pantry had been open and still contained canned food though it was obvious the visitors had helped themselves.
Examination of three nearby houses led Cameron to conclude the residents had simply left. The small town was far enough from a major city to have escaped the blast of the nuclear bombs. Puzzled by the absence of destruction and human remains, Cameron returned to the two-lane road and continued north. The forest surrounding the road and small community still stood, consisting of dead trees, long stripped of their leaves by the perpetual darkness.
Cameron spent her afternoon searching the small shops on Main Street. Noting the exact GPS coordinates for Catherine's scavengers who would strip the town like locusts, she continued to move north, still puzzled by the absence of signs of death or fighting against Skynet forces. Satisfied with the find of the town and the wealth of items it would provide TechCom, Cameron continued to make her way north, leaving the small town on the same road.
Roadside advertising billboards announced the opening of a new split-level shopping mall just a few miles away. Cameron decided she would journey to the mall and go no further north. Two huge finds like this were plenty for her patrol north. Deciding to investigate the mall and perform a quick inventory of the types of stores and if any goods remained would allow Cameron more time to explore the area before having to turn back south for the rendezvous.
The parking lot of the mall was filled with only a few cars, most still locked and undamaged as if waiting for their owners to return from shopping. Cameron spent a few minutes filming all of the vehicles and inventorying them for John Henry. His engineers would certainly want to retrieve or strip the cars for everything useful.
Cameron approached the main entrance, noting the glass doors were shut and undamaged save for a single door with shattered glass. There were no signs of blood on the glass or any hint of violence other than the force used to gain entrance to the building.
It took nearly two hours for Cameron to conduct her quick survey of the abandoned retail structure. She stopped only long enough to lay claim too much needed clothes for Hailey and Ruth. A quick stop at the Victoria's Secret store let Cameron grab a few surprises for John and Derek as she snagged items in her and Sarah's size.
Stopping near the entrance to force her way into a final store, Cameron realized the store sold collectibles and antiques, nothing that would help her family or TechCom immediately. Turning to depart and begin her return, Cameron noticed an old poster advertising a performance of the Russian Bolshoi Ballet Company.
She stood and stared at the old poster, tilting her head, scanning it in a variety of light spectrums.
"It wouldn't hurt anything," Cameron whispered to her self. "It is a proper treasure. Mary and Grace would like to see it. So would Catherine."
Convinced taking the old poster would not harm anything, Cameron forced the security shield up and quickly broke the lock on the entrance. She collected the poster and several like it of famous Russian dancers. A quick search found a cardboard tube designed to mail posters and photos. The posters were carefully rolled up and placed in the tube for safekeeping.
Turning to depart, Cameron's eye caught another poster of a ballet dancer. Stunned, she stared at the image with her mouth open. This time, she removed the poster with even greater care and sealed it up in another tube. With a sense of urgency, Cameron secured the door and pulled the security gate back down in an effort to make the store appear to be secure against entry.
The Connor Family Bunker…
Hailey turned Cameron's box upside down and gave it a good shake. Out fell several carefully folded pieces of thick paper of the type posters were printed on. With great care, Hailey opened each of the posters. The first poster was a black and white print of a ballerina. Printed beneath the image was the ballerina's name, Anna Pavlova.
Unimpressed, Hailey shrugged and carefully folded the poster back up, moving on to the second folded piece of paper. Like the first, it was a black and white image of a ballerina. Tamara Karsavina was printed beneath the image just as in the first poster. Wondering what her mother saw in these two prints, Hailey carefully folded the second poster up, placing it on top of the first she had examined.
Hopeful the final poster, if that was indeed what it was, would be a little more interesting, Hailey carefully unfolded it and turned it over. Her pulse quickened and she covered her mouth with her hand as she gasped in surprise.
Reviews are always appreciated. If you liked this story, you might want to consider my other TSCC stories:
Cameron Grows Up
The Future Cameron
Cameron versus the Queen
Cameron's Revenge
Cameron and the Black Bird
Cameron and John's Wedding
Who's the Boss?
The Storm Before the Calm