Cameron Reflects
Disclaimer: Don't own TSCC
This story is set in The Future Cameron's Universe after Cameron's Revenge and Cameron's Expedition. It contains characters from my version of the TSCC universe starting with Cameron Grows Up.
Note: You are certainly welcome to read this short story and I hope it makes sense as a standalone story. It will certainly make sense if you've read the stories leading up to it. (See those listed above).
Strolling through the city's Central Park, Cameron decided not to be irritated with her John for ordering her to take an entire day off. Sitting down on one of the many benches in the park, Cameron ran her hand along her rib cage, feeling the site of the last wound still healing.
It was taking longer for her wounds to heal, for the flesh to regenerate. To Cameron's horror and Sarah's delight, her mother-in-law found another strand of grey hair while combing out Cameron's hair two days earlier, bringing the total number found to three. Her surgery to replace her lower leg was scheduled for the coming week. Savannah had finished fabricating her replacement. The replacement contained several new features designed to prevent the types of mechanical stress that led to the replacement of her original leg.
Happy with the improvements, Cameron had let Savannah know how pleased she was with the replacement. What Cameron had not discussed with Savannah was her concern over how long it would take for her flesh to regenerate after the replacement surgery.
Watching the people of TechCom city stroll by, going about their duty, taking care of family errands or simply enjoying the park, Cameron felt a strange sense of pride. In the distance by a large pond, a family's three young children were laughing and splashing as they chased the family dog about in the water. Nearby reclining on a blanket were the parents, laughing at the antics of their offspring and dog. Moving slowly through the water, verbally chastising the dog and waving his arms in frustration with the animal was the family's T-600 protector.
Cameron smiled for a brief second at the scene, wishing John was with her. Outsiders might view the scene in alarm. John would have loved it. A happy family outing involving humans, a Terminator and a dog, all part of the same family.
Walking past the pond was the popular blonde T-800 female whose name escaped Cameron. She held hands with a member of the Airborne, a human Cameron noted, making an annotation to mention to Ruth the successful pairing of another human airborne soldier with a female Terminator, even if the metal was a blonde.
John would be pleased with Cameron's restraint she noted, making another annotation to discuss with her John that evening. She had been able to observe the attractive blonde T-800 and not sensed a need to terminate the female or establish dominance. It was rare, but Cameron noted she was experiencing the ability to not react to blonde females on occasion. Adding a third annotation, this time to thank Derek for mandating the new protocol of all blonde female personnel serving in the military to demonstrably not challenge Cameron for dominance. She wondered if the psychological relief, the concept of which amused her, of her CPU to not have to constantly run her dominance protocols and execute her threat assessment programming had granted a small amount of relief from her Riley issues.
Always in read/write mode, Cameron decided it was possible learning and creating new code could abate her Riley issues. Possible, but not likely, she was fairly certain. That bitch whore had caused Cameron too much pain and stress to completely get over the meddling girl. Deciding John's protection, their relationship and her dominance was far too important, Cameron decided she'd never allow herself to be completely rid of her Riley issues, unpleasant and troublesome as they may be.
Focusing on the blonde T-800 and her human beau, Cameron felt a twinge of jealousy. The pair was able to openly display their affection for each other, something Cameron had not been able to do with her John at various times in their past. Granted, when the pair had been away from Sarah and Derek at school their final year of school, they had been able to openly display their relationship as boyfriend and girlfriend. Even then, they had to take great care not to allow Cameron's true nature become known.
"Stupid blonde," Cameron muttered aloud, causing the T-800 to flinch despite the distance and quickly glance back over her shoulder at Cameron. Recognizing Cameron, the T-800 immediately glanced down at the ground and to the left, acknowledging Cameron's dominance and authority over her.
"My apologies, it's not you," Cameron said aloud, knowing the T-800 would hear her. Without raising her gaze from the ground, the T-800 nodded in acknowledgement and turned to look forward, moving closer to her human companion.
Like he could protect you from me, Cameron thought. Still, it was progress she noted. Terminators were learning to assimilate better, developing their social skills and ability to fit in to human society. Humans were adapting as well. She watched as the Airborne trooper put his arm around his metal girlfriend and cautiously glanced back at Cameron. He can't protect her physically, but he can make her feel secure in their relationship, just like John protects me.
Taking her leave of the pleasant view in the park, Cameron made her way to the nearly completed performance hall. When finished it would be able to host ballet performances, an orchestra, musicals and theatrical productions. It would also become the city's movie theatre on occasion. John Henry, at Cameron and his mother Catherine's insistence, had modified the structure's design, requiring considerable additional excavation. Instructional and practice facilities had been added, to allow for the training and practice of current and future performers. A functional workshop had been completed to allow for the construction and storage of sets and props.
It will be good to have a routine that includes dance again, a chance to perform for others. Cameron giggled to herself, making no outward signs of her amusement. It will be fun to make Derek cry in public again.
That evening…
Cameron heard John approaching their bunker nearly fifty meters before he arrived home. She hopped up from their bed and hurried to great her husband.
"Let's go."
"I've just gotten home. I'm tired."
John looked at Cameron, studying her non-expression.
"Is Hailey okay? No training accident today?"
"Hailey's fine."
"Mom? Derek? Ruth?"
"Everyone's fine, but you won't be if you don't take me out for dinner. I want pizza followed by ice cream."
"We don't have a pizzeria yet in TechCom," a puzzled John announced. "Nor an ice cream parlor."
"Better have them added to the master plan then," Cameron quipped, putting her hands on her hips while tilting her head, and not in an inquisitive manner.
"Hold on," a suddenly concerned John said, trying to by himself time. "I don't process as quickly as you do."
Cameron remained silent, glaring at John without moving.
John glanced down to start his examination for clues. Noting Cameron had on a new pair of boots tipped him off she was up to something. New, tight blue jeans with a greyish crop top covered by a thin purple cotton blouse Cameron had left unbuttoned, exposing nearly an inch of her bare abdomen.
A glance at her hands indicated he was in trouble if he didn't come to the correct conclusion and quickly. Cameron was wearing her wedding band and engagement ring with its huge purple diamond. Dangling from her ears were the purple amethyst earrings he'd given his wife before they married. To make his situation more precarious, Cameron's hair was styled to look thick with body and a slight curl. Make up drew his eyes to Cameron's lips first and then to her eyes. Clearly, she expected something.
"Yep," John muttered softly. "I'm a goner."
"No, you are not," Cameron informed him. "You will be if your wife doesn't have a romantic evening like she wants though."
"I'm really tired. Let's do this Friday after duty."
"Give me your tablet," Cameron ordered, snatching the device from John's grasp. "I bet you have a new duty rotation, heavy on blonde female personnel now that I'm on medical leave."
"Whoa, no such thing Cameron," a panicked John blurted, grabbing his tablet back. He gave her a firm look as he sat down his tablet on the family's dining table.
"I'll need to change," he mumbled, knowing Cameron was not going to give in.
"You look fine in your uniform," she announced, slipping her arm around his. "I want to be seen in public with my General." Cameron stood on her toes and kissed John on his cheek.
"Let's go. The Old Man is off for the evening and Sarah and Derek have all the dogs."
"You've thought of everything, I see," John stated, frowning in displeasure.
"Yes. You can relax. Cook will have the pizza waiting when we arrive. He's even made a large batch of homemade ice cream."
Much later that evening…
Cameron watched her John as he slept peacefully. His vitals were normal and he gave no indication the nightmares would trouble him that night. Pressing her bare skin even closer as Cameron ran her hands over her husband's scarred chest, she let the influx of data her sensors collected flow over her.
It had been a pleasant evening. Cameron had made certain nobody approached them while they had spent their evening "out on the town." Rather the Old Man had once again proved he was the best watcher/protector in the city after Cameron. The old T-600 had headed off every possible disruption to their evening, human, metal or canine.
Watching her John sleep peacefully, Cameron reviewed her favorite "courting" memories in her files. Working her way through the many stored memories, it saddened Cameron to realize she and John had never been able to have what most before Judgment Day would consider a normal courtship.
Even when circumstances changed and they were able to openly carry on their relationship as boyfriend and girlfriend, the need to hide Cameron's true nature combined with her struggle to learn to control her emotions all the while trying to appear to be a completely normal teenage girl had limited their ability to develop a normal relationship.
Skynet had not helped matters either Cameron mused. The constant need to be ever vigilant in her duty as John's protector limited the amount of focus she could place on learning how to have a relationship, even with her ability to multi-task. Constantly having to deal with the fight against Skynet and the A.I.'s allies had also put a damper on "dating."
Putting away her memory files, Cameron realized another issue that had hampered her ability to properly pursue John and to be properly pursued was the presence and interference of both Sarah and Derek. Cameron understood far better now what Sarah and Derek had done to limit her initial access to John and later to restrict their growing relationship had been done out of concern for John and a perfectly rational fear of what she was.
As Cameron considered the closeness their dysfunctional family had developed, in large part through her efforts and manipulation, she felt old resentments bubble up to the surface in the form of particularly painful memory files.
John stirred, causing Cameron to shut down all memory files to focus on her husband. She smiled in the dark as John's hands became a little too familiar as he slept. Rolling over on her left side, Cameron waited to see if her John would follow suit. Within seconds John did the same while reaching around Cameron's slender waist with his right arm and snuggly pulling her close to him.
Things had changed in so many ways since Cameron focused her optical sensors on her John for the first time at the rural high school where they met. Cameron viewed the video file of their first awkward exchanges and in doing so realized how much fun it would have been if she had actually been able to feel the emotions her infiltration program was displaying as she worked to get close to her John.
Holding her husband's right hand with her own, Cameron leaned back against John's chest and considered their lives now that a second Skynet had been terminated, Hailey was in the military as was Ruth. Having been forced from her command of the Silver Brigade and active combat status, Cameron realized how much time had been given back to her.
She'd planned to fill it by restarting her dancing career and supervising John even more closely than before. Sarah required a bit more attention as she aged and the addition of the duty of clan matriarch was time consuming as well.
Despite the changes, all of which Cameron had adjusted to and accepted, even the loss of her combat status (which she knew was really just a formality, nothing would ever stop her from fighting to defend her John and her family), she felt a void within herself.
Unwilling to discuss this feeling with John, Cameron had broached the subject with Sarah. Sarah's response had been to laugh at Cameron. To Cameron's surprise, Sarah and Derek were enjoying having an empty bunker even though they missed Ruth's presence. The arrival of the first grandchild would fill the void or so Sarah had promised.
Hailey's having too much fun playing the field. I won't be a grandmother anytime soon.
Imagining her daughter's behavior with members of the opposite sex, Cameron was all too well aware her baby girl was a flirt, a flirt who liked to be pursued as much as she liked males themselves.
To her surprise, Cameron's emotion simulator began generating feelings of envy towards Hailey. It didn't take long before Ruth and her beau Lt. Dan were added to the list. Savannah and her new flame, Captain Jones of Airbase S-14 suddenly generated feelings of envy. The image of the blonde T-800 holding hands with her human boyfriend proved to be too much. Cameron shut all of the files and sat up in bed, startling John enough to wake him.
"What's wrong," a sleepy John mumbled.
"Nothing," Cameron monotoned.
"Right, nothing," John replied, releasing his firm grip around Cameron's waist and rolling back on his back. Within seconds he was asleep again.
"We will discuss this tomorrow when you are alert John," Cameron whispered as she settled back down next to her husband. Pulling the blankets back over them, Cameron scanned his vitals for a final time, storing the data as she shut down her systems in order to enter her mandated period of maintenance she referred to as Terminator Sleep.
Late the next morning…
Slowly John stretched his leg towards Cameron's side of the bed, checking to see if she was up and about. His toes failing to come in contact with anything other than cold sheets, John moved over to the middle of the bed, luxuriating in having their bed all to himself. Sniffing the air to see what Cameron had cooked for breakfast, John sat up in with a mild sense of alarm. No smells of Cameron's delightfully cooked breakfasts were wafting about in the air.
Pulling on a pair of shorts, John quickly hurried out to the family's eating area where he found Cameron sitting reading from a tablet. A quick glance told him Cameron had not gotten dressed for the day or done much of anything. Wearing only a pair of cotton shorts and a skimpy top, she sat ignoring John, reading something of interest on her tablet.
"What time is it?"
"O848. You slept in late."
John scowled at Cameron, failing to attract her attention.
"No breakfast?"
"Cook is taking today off. It's Saturday."
"You always cook a really nice breakfast on Saturday," John protested. "I look forward to it all week."
Cameron just shrugged indifferently in response, continuing to read from her tablet.
"Ruth has done some really nice designs for the sets for our first performance," Cameron announced, deliberately changing the subject.
"I'm hungry," John reminded Cameron.
"I'm not," was her emotionless reply. "You know how to cook. Fix yourself something if you're that hungry."
Feeling more irritated with each passing second, John forgot for a moment who and what he was dealing with and pressed the issue.
"I'm hungry Cameron. Fix me something to eat," he protested.
"No," was her simple reply.
"What?"
"You take me for granted. I want to be made to feel special."
Confused, John shook his head, surprised by Cameron's defiance.
"You aren't going to feed me a carefully prepared meal, giving you the opportunity to monitor my exact food intake?"
"No."
"Normally, I would be happy about getting a little more freedom from your, how shall I put it Cameron, restrictive care policies. But I'm hungry. Please, cook me something."
"No."
"What has gotten into you?"
"You take me for granted," Cameron repeated. "I want to be courted. I want you to put in the effort required to win me, just like a new couple."
"We're married Cameron. We have a daughter," John stated bluntly.
"I am well aware of both of these facts. It does not change the fact you take me for granted. Nor does it lessen my desire to be courted and won."
"Courted? Won? We're married Cameron," an incredulous John growled.
"I never was courted properly. It wasn't entirely your fault John. So many things were against us. But now, we live in a society that will accept our relationship. We don't have to fight Sarah and Derek to be together. I want to be courted. Properly. Openly."
"Cameron, this is silly," John complained.
"No it's not. You take me for granted. I take care of you and protect you. I'm your Sexbot. I know you are faithful and protect our relationship, but you take me for granted John. A little attention and romance would go a long way."
Cameron stood up and walked into their bedroom, ignoring the look of anger on John's face. Following his wife into their bedroom to give Cameron a piece of his mind, John found a naked Cameron who fixed him with her best Terminator Death Glare.
"Take a good look John," Cameron ordered. "It's the last one you'll get until you court me and make me feel special, like a girlfriend or wife should feel." Cameron grabbed her clothes for the day and brushed past John to take a shower and get dressed. Her glare had changed to her best pout and she made certain John got a good look at her expression.
"Hope you enjoyed the view John," Cameron called as she entered the bathroom.
TechCom Command Central…
"Thanks John. You couldn't just take one for the team?"
Looking up, John looked directly into the annoyed expression Derek wore on his face.
"What are you talking about?"
"The TEAM? You know, all the other married men in TechCom? What? You didn't think Tin Miss wouldn't go running to Sarah the first chance she got? Do I really have to tell you Sarah was going to take Cameron's side? That I was going to get an earful about the same topic from Sarah?"
"Great, just great," John sighed in frustration.
"Yeah. Great. Tin Miss is mounting a mass campaign I'll have you know. If you'd just gone along with her from the get go there would have been no collateral damage."
"Well, she's lost her CPU this time. We're married. Why should I "court her" now?"
"Because it's what she wants? She's a Terminator John, a fact I'm sure you haven't forgotten. She's not a normal stubborn female. This is a war you cannot win. Cameron will not relent. You will never be able to reason with her about this and until you give in and court her, she's just going to broaden the battlefield, causing more casualties!"
Growing annoyed with his Uncle, John looked down at the maps on his desk. "What do you care? My fight."
"I've already had to go beg Cook for a nice dinner just for Sarah and me tonight. Then I have to take her for a walk in Central Park. I'll have you know, Cameron just left John Henry's office. Do you know what they were talking about? Expanding the cafeteria to include areas for a nice restaurant style sitting area, a pizzeria area and an ice cream parlor. John Henry had the sense to immediately establish an engineering and design team to handle it."
"I didn't approve those changes to our facilities," John growled.
"John Henry had the sense to by pass procedure and agree with Cameron and HE'S SINGLE John!"
"So you have to take Mom out for dinner," John responded.
"John, now we have to come up with procedures to earn a meal at the new facilities. You do realize this is going to cut into poker time?"
Derek stormed out of John's office allowing the door to slam behind him.
Days Later – TechCom PreOp…
"You ready to get this over with?"
"Yes."
"John still being unreasonable?"
"Yes."
"Cameron, men are stupid and stubborn sometimes."
"I agree."
"Human or metal."
"Of course."
Savannah sighed as she finished her examination of Cameron.
"He is prideful. That's making it harder for him. Can you find a way to toss him a bone so to speak? Let him back down and give in while keeping his male pride?"
"No. Just because we're married is no reason for me not to be romanced. I never got to really experience that before Judgment Day. I do not hold that against my John. Now that things have changed, I want my husband to court me."
Savannah gave no indication outwardly about how she felt about the feud between the two most prominent citizens of TechCom. Nor did she feel like she could comment. She certainly enjoyed the attentions of the new liaison officer for Airbase S-14, Captain Jones.
"Tomorrow night, Wilhelm is taking Matt to the poker game with him. You know, to let him meet the other male leaders of TechCom. Male bonding, that sort of thing. Want to have a girl's night? Drag Mary and Grace along?"
Cameron shrugged, indicating indifference.
"You'll be up to it. I'll push you around in a wheelchair myself."
"I want my John to baby me while I recover," Cameron stated with an unusual degree of stubbornness for her or any other Terminator.
"Well, I tell you what. I'll talk to Mary and Grace after duty and we'll plan on a girl's night. Then I'll have a little chat with your John. How does that sound?"
Cameron pouted in silence as she processed Savannah's offer.
"He is being unduly stubborn. Derek has already gotten in several arguments about it with him and now Derek and Sarah are feuding as well."
Watching her some times difficult friend process, Savannah felt a desire to help both of the Connors. Cameron was not being unreasonable in wanting some special romantic attention. That much Savannah agreed with. John on the other hand was being stubborn and prideful. The problem as Savannah saw it, John had no clue how to go about dating his own wife in the world they lived in. Truth be told, Cameron probably couldn't exactly explain to John herself what it was she wanted from him.
The resulting mess between TechCom's most prominent married couple was causing people to take sides in the couples tiff. Naturally, the males sided with the General and the females sided with Cameron with the result being increasing tension between the genders, human and metal. Telling this to Cameron would not change how she felt. Savannah was certain of that.
She'd have to find a way to talk some sense into John. That and figure out a way for him to wiggle off the hook he'd gotten so publically caught on.
Taking a scalpel from the medical supplies, Savannah patted the gurney in the room. Cameron, dressed only in a paper gown frowned before climbing up and lying down on the gurney.
"Let's get this over with. I'll make the smallest incision possible so it will heal quickly."
"I can put myself in standby," Cameron complained.
"Yes, and you can also wake yourself right up. I'm not going to have that happen. This is going to take me most of the day to replace your leg and I have no intention of you making a mess of your leg replacement because you decided to wake up. Doctor's orders."
Cameron frowned before resuming her blank expression.
"It causes me anxiety to have my chip touched by anyone. I am fearful of it being damaged."
Savannah smiled as she looked down at Cameron. "I know, and I will be extra careful. Your chip will not be removed, simply disengaged. You aren't going to go bad. You will be okay. As soon as I wake you up, make sure you run all of your self-diagnostic tests. If it would help, why don't you set your programs to do that right now? I can wait."
A twitch shook Cameron's face as she blinked both eyes once.
"I have done as you suggested."
Glancing down at her patient's left hand, Savannah noticed the glitch had started.
"You're going to be fine. You tissue will regenerate and you're not going to have any scars. Once John gets over being bullheaded, he's going to want to be intimate with you again. It will be okay, I promise Cameron."
Cameron nodded once without speaking.
Savannah made the incision in Cameron's scalp and disengaged her chip, shutting her friend down for the surgery.
TechCom Central Command…
"Enter."
John looked up from his maps to rub away the beginnings of a stress headache as he waited to see who planned to enter his office and add to the day's stress. The door opened, giving him a glimpse of flaming red hair.
"Savannah?" he called, looking back down at his maps.
"It would help if you would use these," Savannah replied, pulling John's glasses from the top of his head and holding them out for him to take. John pulled them quickly from Savannah's extended hand and sat down, a gruff expression on his face.
"Is Cameron awake yet?"
"I haven't rebooted her yet. I wanted to talk to you first."
"Everything went okay? No problems?" John asked quickly, noticing a large bundle wrapped in a white sheet in Savannah's arms.
"May I take a seat?"
""Yes, I'm sorry. I haven't been myself lately."
"Even more thoughtless than usual? Even for you General?"
"I see. You've taken her side then."
Savannah sighed. "It's not like you to have not come with Cameron for her surgery. She didn't say anything, but it upset her."
John sat in silence for a moment before responding. "Who do you know she was upset?"
"She was worried about having her chip disengaged. Cameron feared she would go bad again during the reboot."
"I'm not worried about that," John replied with a small degree of uncertainty.
"I know you aren't. But that often is how Cameron's insecurity manifests itself. Concern for you or her doing something to you."
Savannah watched as John fidgeted, playing with his maps in silence, adjusting them and moving them about.
"You need to give in and do what she wants."
"No. It's entirely unreasonable. We're married. I stood up to Mom and Derek, which was no easy thing to do. I dealt with all kinds of craziness so Cameron and I could build the relationship we have. Now she wants to start over? No. It's unreasonable and I won't do it. I won't give in."
"John, that's not what she wants."
"Oh, I see. I can take it you know what she wants?"
"To feel like you still see her as that girl you fell for. That you would marry her again. She's not getting younger John. We have no idea how Terminators will deal with the aging process. I do know she's concerned about her regeneration process not working as quickly as it used to. Sarah found a third grey hair as well. This could be manifestation of a sort of Terminator mid-life crisis."
John stared at Savannah for a moment.
"She's a stunning beauty Savannah. Cameron's the same knockout today that she was the first time I saw her. On the other hand, I'm scarred, showing signs of going grey. I'm so stiff in the mornings some days I think arthritis is already setting in. Stress is the only thing keeping me from getting fat. If she was human, I'd have real concerns about Cameron dumping me for a better looking, younger officer."
"John, Cameron may not feel like she's the same "looker" she was when she was built. Her regeneration process is slowing. In fact, that's part of why I'm here."
"Not just to stir the pot in the war of the sexes?"
"John, I'm going to ignore that," Savannah said firmly, frowning at John. "You and Cameron have started a lot of conflict between husband and wife as well as boyfriend and girlfriend."
"Excuse me?"
"Mom and Wilhelm have been at it. Mom has sided with Cameron and poor Wilhelm is clueless as usual. Your parents have been at it. Father Hidalgo tells me he's had to counsel more than a few couples, particularly hybrid couples. They see the two of you as role models that their relationship can be made to work. When they see the two of you openly feuding, it causes issues. It's not fair, but there it is."
"Savannah, I think you're reading a little too much into this. Cameron will come to her senses."
"For the record John, I'm on Cameron's side. Your stubborn pride is getting the better of you. Court her John. She needs to feel pretty and desirable."
"Savannah, Cameron's metal. She's not particularly vain."
"Really now. I've seen the underwear she has. There are only two types in her unmentionables drawer. Very practical and seduction wear. I also know she likes seducing you."
"How…" a flustered John muttered.
"Girl talk. And don't kid yourself. Terminators are vain. Just in different ways than humans. They learn in different ways and with different learning curves. They're vain about different things. Trust me, I spend enough time listening to their complaints."
Savannah gave John a moment to digest what she'd told him.
"I altered the plan for the surgery. When I removed her original lower leg, I left as much of the original flesh sheath as possible. By the way, everything went well John."
John blinked several times; embarrassed for not asking how Cameron's surgery had gone.
"Cameron currently has an incision that runs from just above her kneecap all the way down the midline of her shin and the top of her foot. I had to remove all the tissue from the ball of her foot forward. She will only have to regenerate the flesh over her toes and surrounding area. If this is successful, it will change how we operate, at least on our older model Terminators."
Swallowing before he spoke, John softly said, "thank you for taking such good care of Cameron. I truly appreciate it and I'm sure she will as well."
"Now, just because I like you, General, and I'm so close to Cameron, I'm going to help you swallow your pride and make nice with your wife."
"Okay, I'll bite. How are you going to help me?"
Savannah sat the bundle she held on John's desk and began carefully unwrapping it.
"What is that," John asked.
"Cameron's original leg."
"Uh, is there a reason for showing me this," John asked with a degree of uncertainty.
A quick scowl from Savannah silence John.
"Yes. There is. Cameron was a very rare Terminator. So much so Skynet's ego got the better of him. Let's face it John, our little Tin Miss is a masterpiece."
"I'll agree to that. Why is her old leg interesting?"
"It has her built date inscribed in it! Evidently, Skynet thought she was special enough to engrave it on the inside of her fibula, right below the kneecap. Look, right here."
John slipped on his glasses and squinted, straining to read the engraving Savannah pointed to.
"Sure enough. It's her built date," John said aloud.
"And the good thing is its only three days from today! You can through your beautiful wife a surprise built day party and invite all of her friends. Kill a lot of birds with one stone," Savannah said encouragingly.
John sat in silence for several minutes, thinking.
"Cameron doesn't know her built date and she has never wanted to really dig that deep in her files to find out. Brings up bad memories, Skynet, Allison, all that sort of stuff. This would be a way for me to do something really nice for her without having to really back down. I think you're right Savannah. A built day party it is."
Frowning still at John, Savannah spoke her mind. "John, treat her special! Oh, and do not, repeat do not, reveal the year of her construction. Cameron's old enough for that to be an issue."
"What? Savannah, Cameron's metal, the year she was built won't be an issue like it would be for, oh say, my Mom."
"She's female John. Do NOT reveal the year she was built. I promise you, you'll wind up in a brand new doghouse."
"All right. Message received."
"I took the liberty of having Mom and Sarah plan her surprise party. It's going to be in the Cafeteria. Then we're having a special showing of her two favorite classic movies in Central Park. The Maltese Falcon and Casablanca. You will need to decide on the gift you plan to give her."
John opened his mouth to complain, thought better of it, and closed his mouth. Savannah could see she'd gotten through to the stubborn General.
"Come on, John. It'll be fun for everyone and good for TechCom. Besides, Catherine knows how to throw a party. It's right up my mom's snooty alley."
"You're right. Uh, what should I get Cameron?"
"I've already talked to John Henry. He'll have the gift ready for you to examine tomorrow. Cameron will love it."
Savannah wrapped up Cameron's original leg quickly and stood to go.
"Savannah."
"Yes?"
"I'm sorry. Cameron's just so, I don't know. She is so hard for me to deal with sometimes."
Savannah smiled at John and laughed. "I know exactly what you mean. But she's your wife and you need to listen to her when she goes through spells like this. Just because you think Cameron is so tough and formidable doesn't mean she doesn't have a sensitive female side. She's lived long enough and developed so much as a person. Not to mention, we don't know how Terminators are doing to deal with aging. I doubt Skynet ever meant for Cameron to exist this long, or any of the other Terminators for that matter."
John simply nodded, acknowledging he had heard Savannah.
Leaning over John, Savannah gave him a friendly nudge. "Besides, a little romance means the Sexbot is much more likely to pay her General a visit."
Laughing at John's embarrassed expression, Savannah waived over her shoulder as she departed.
TechCom Medical Complex – Recovery…
"Ready?"
"Yeah. Go ahead Savannah."
John held Cameron's hand firmly.
Savannah reinstalled Cameron's ship and began suturing the small incision in her scalp. In just over 60 seconds Cameron's eyes opened. Her body gave a small jerk. John squeezed her hand and leaned over to kiss Cameron on her nose.
"You look beautiful," John whispered.
"Wait," Cameron warned. A puzzled look came across John's face as he watched Cameron's eyes quiver for a few seconds before she sighed.
"I'm okay John. I'm not bad. I ran all of my tests. I canceled the Termination order. I'm not bad John."
"It's okay Cameron. I knew you'd be fine," John said gently. "Savannah did a nice job on your new leg. I'm going to let her explain everything to you, but your leg looks great."
Savannah and John both watched as the mention of her leg caused Cameron to tilt her head.
"I can feel sensation like I still have my flesh," Cameron said with a confused tone.
"You do and I'm glad you so easily detected your sensor readings," Savannah said.
"You were able to save my synthetic flesh?"
"Most of it. You'll have to regenerate the end of your foot and toes and you have a huge incision the length of your leg that has to heal, but you don't have to regenerate an entire leg's worth."
Cameron looked up at John with her blank expression. For just a brief second John saw a glimmer of worry on his wife's face.
"Yes, well. Time to go home and be babied for a few days. I've taken leave, sort of. I'll be working from home a bit while I make sure you're okay."
John and Cameron both looked at Savannah quickly for reassurance. The redhead smiled broadly for the pair and proceeded to lecture Cameron about what her limitations were for the next few days.
The Connor Family Bunker – Three Days Later…
"You look fine Cameron. Seriously. I made reservations with Cook for us to have pizza. We have to go if we're going to get there in time," John implored.
Cameron frowned at him before lowering herself into her wheelchair, a restriction she grew to resent more with each passing hour.
"My incision is almost completely healed," she groused.
"Savannah was explicit in her instructions. No walking about until she's certain the incision is not going to scar. For once, please, be cooperative," John commanded.
"Connor females are noted for their lack of cooperation," Cameron grumbled as John began pushing her towards the bunker's door. John smiled in relief to hear Cameron refer to herself still as a Connor female.
"Well, the way you've been acting the last few days, Mom would be proud," John complained, hoping to get a reaction from Cameron. She ignored him and rode in silence as John wheeled her through the corridors to the Cafeteria.
John pushed Cameron in and headed towards the area sealed off for new construction.
"John Henry's engineers are going to enlarge the eating area. Cook's not happy about it but we need additional seating capacity."
He watched as Cameron stared with clear focus at the curtains hanging up to block the view of the new construction area.
"Why are lead lined curtains from the Medical Center being used?"
"I don't know Cameron. Have to ask John Henry that when you get a chance. Let's see what the mess looks like."
John wheeled Cameron over and stopped, clearing his throat loudly before he pulled back one of the curtains.
Ever curious, Cameron leaned forward to peek as John pulled the curtains aside. She sat back quickly in surprise.
"Happy Built Day Cameron!"
A momentary look of shock crossed Cameron's face before her blank expression returned. Gathered in the area were all of the Connor and Reese Clan, friends and close associates. Decorations covered the entire area and the pleasant aroma of pizza and other Italian dishes filled the air. Cameron clutched John's hand with her own and looked at him.
"It's your Built Day! We wanted to surprise you."
"But, nobody knows my Built Day," Cameron responded, her head tilted in confusion.
John leaned over and whispered in his wife's ear, "Skynet seemed to have believed you were his masterpiece. He inscribed your built day on the fibula of your original leg. Savannah found it post-surgery."
Cameron looked up at her husband hopefully, tugging his hand to get him to lean over so she could talk to him and not be heard. "Are you sure?"
"Savannah showed me herself. I even know the year you were assembled."
"Don't you dare tell anyone other than me," Cameron warned. "I'm serious. Especially Derek."
John laughed at his wife and kissed her nose.
"I'm serious John Connor. General or not, I'll never forgive you if Derek knows how many years old I am."
"Are you threatening your commanding officer?" John teased. "You may have to be disciplined for that when we return to the bunker Commander Connor."
"Sexbot is not playing if Derek knows exactly how old she is," Cameron hissed through clinched teeth.
"It looks like the Commander has confessed and will be disciplined after her court martial in the General's bunker," John whispered with a smile.
"Maybe," Cameron said in her monotone. "Sexbot is not sure she wants to play with a husband who won't court her and make her feel like she is still special. Like before Judgment Day."
"Cameron, I would marry you again. Today. Tonight. Now, a lot of people, Catherine in particular worked hard to make this a special occasion for you. Let's have fun."
The Connor Family Bunker That Evening…
Cameron wiggled her new toes as she lay in bed. Running her fingers over the long incision on her shin, she noted the skin was smoother and the wound was healing quicker than she had hoped. John had been gentle when he undressed Cameron. Without a word, he'd helped her put on her extra-large sized t-shirt she used to let John know she was not in the mood. He'd helped her into their bed and vanished without a word.
Cameron had tracked John by sound to their kitchen minutes earlier. Sounds emanated from the kitchen continuously, indicating John was still moving about looking for something.
"Please don't mess up my kitchen," Cameron monotoned loudly so John would hear her.
"I'm looking for something. Just be patient."
The noise stopped and in seconds John appeared in the doorway to their bedroom.
"Found it," he said triumphantly. "Hailey didn't hide it exactly where I told her to."
"Hide what," Cameron said suspiciously while tilting her head.
"Your surprise," John replied with a big smile.
"I have mixed feelings about surprises," Cameron said, frowning slightly.
"I think you'll like this surprise, just like all the other surprises so far tonight."
John held out a box wrapped in faded purple paper.
"No scanning it. You have to open it like a human. That's the proper way to open a surprise present," he ordered.
Cameron took the box and shook it. "I can shake it," she stated.
"Of course you can."
Holding the box to her nose, Cameron sniffed it. Revealing no additional clues, Cameron considered touching her tongue to the wrapping, but decided against it.
"I should be allowed to can it," she complained.
"Against the rules," John replied firmly.
Carefully she removed the wrapping to reveal a wood box. Cameron shot a suspicious glance at John before opening the box. John watched Cameron's face, hoping she would react.
Cameron looked up quickly at her husband and then back at the contents of the box. Carefully she removed the contents and began examining them. John watched happily as Cameron's Terminator personality kicked in as he had hoped. She examined the gift for a full ten minutes before speaking.
"They are not Russian, but they are excellent approximations. They will fit perfectly. Did John Henry or one of his craftsmen make them?"
"John Henry himself."
"Thank you," Cameron whispered. "They are beautiful."
"I wish I could take credit for the idea, but I can't. It was either Savannah's idea or Catherine's. Of course, only John Henry could make them. Everyone wants to see you wear them when it's time."
A single tear ran down Cameron's cheek.
"They are beautiful pointe shoes."
"For a beautiful dancer," John whispered. "I know you go through these things like I do water. I remember you had an allowance to pay for them when you danced for the ballet company. John Henry made more than one pair and he's working out how to train a craftsman so we will have a sufficient supply when rehearsal starts."
Cameron returned her new ballet slippers to the box, setting if carefully on her bedside table. To John's surprise she pulled her oversized t-shirt off, wadded it up and threw it against the room's light switch, casting the room in sudden darkness.
"Cameron, you okay," John asked in alarm.
"Yes," she replied tearfully.
"What did you do that for then?"
"I only sleep in that when I want you to know Sexbot is not coming to play and I don't want to fight with you about it."
"I know," John said quickly. "That's why I got if for you to sleep in tonight."
Reaching out quickly, Cameron grabbed John's shirt and pulled him towards her, using her strength to toss him gently over her onto his side of the bed.
"What are you doing?"
John felt Cameron's hands push him down on his back. Her lips pressed against his passionately. Gently, John pushed Cameron with enough force to separate her lips from his.
"Cameron, are you okay?"
"Yes," was the happy reply.
"I wasn't trying to pressure you into playing Sexbot. You have to let your incision heal."
"You were being nice. I know. I do appreciate the thoughtful act on your part."
"You're worrying me Cameron."
"You have nothing to worry about," Cameron replied mischievously. "Nothing harmful that is."
"Stop. Seriously. Explain. You're going to injure your incision."
John felt Cameron distribute her body weight evenly so he would be comfortable while she lay on top of him. He could feel her bare Coltan toes rubbing against his shin.
"You made me feel pretty."
"I'm confused now," John admitted. "You're going to have to explain."
"You were thoughtful. You carefully helped me in bed. Selecting the nightshirt you did made me feel unpressured, comfortable. You reminded me I am a ballerina, not just a Terminator. I feel pretty. I know my husband still wants me."
Confused, John gently traced the steel protrusions of Cameron's spine with his fingertips, allowing her to enjoy the sensation.
"You can just relax. It's your built day. Your special day."
"John, this isn't your Sexbot talking to you. It's your wife."
"Oh."
As his eyes adjusted to the dim light of their room, John could see the faint smile on his wife's face that passed for what would be a broad display of happiness for most humans.
"I'm sorry about being a jerk. You deserve to be courted. Made to feel special."
"Of course I do," Cameron answered, still grinning. "You're forgiven," she whispered before gently biting John's bottom lip.
TechCom Central Park…
As had become her habit, Cameron sat on her now favorite bench, watching the large, manufactured indoor pond that was a common focal point for visitors the city's park. Sitting with her toes exposed, Cameron noted only the ends of her new toes needed to regenerate their flesh covering and new toenails needed to form.
Wishing for a cool breeze to blow, something she noted John Henry needed to take care of, Cameron extended her legs from under the bench, exposing the nasty looking incision on her shin. She had taken to wearing short denim skirts reminiscent of her years as a high school student in order to expose the healing wound to the air as much as possible at the advice of Savannah.
Gone was the angry red scar that had run from above her kneecap down the center of her shin through the middle of her foot. A faint pink scar had taken its place, delighting Savannah and Cameron both that she still healed without leaving scars, or so it seemed. The regenerated flesh on her toes was a mix of red and pink skin, leaning more towards a bright pink now as the healing process was nearing its end.
It had been eight days since her surprise Built Day party and the wonderful private time she had spent alone with her John in their bunker.
Rehearsals were scheduled to begin in a month for the Black Swan, a ballet Cameron had never danced. Mary and Grace were delighted. John had been grousing Catherine was a bit distracted when on duty due to the attention she paid to the production process. Cameron had responded it was not possible for Catherine to be distracted. She was simply multi-tasking.
The issue worried Cameron. She knew she was aging and so was Catherine. In the past her toes would already have healed completely and her toenails would be nearly ready to apply nail polish to. Savannah's new surgical technique had spared her the more lengthy process of regenerating and entire limb's worth of tissue.
John had been more attentive at home and equally insistent Cameron develop the training schedule that was going to allow her more time to engage in non-military activity. Sarah was under similar orders as well. The pair had been scheming to find a way for Ruth to be promoted quickly so Sarah could step away from the Infiltrators and know Ruth would be able to take command in a relatively short period of time.
Cameron smiled at the thought of her and Sarah scheming together as her John and Sarah's Derek referred to their now daily lunch meetings. Sarah was showing signs of slowing down physically but not mentally and it worried Cameron. Despite knowing Sarah was human, Cameron realized she had somehow written code that depicted Sarah as being reasonably indestructible for a human. It was wrong to have done so.
After the latest round of emotional trauma with John, Cameron looked back on the countless changes in their lives. Sarah had looked particularly tired today at lunch. Lines around her eyes were now noticeable despite Sarah's acquired skill of hiding her age with subtle makeup.
It had been Sarah's idea for them to start meeting for lunch on a daily basis.
"It'll make John and Derek suspicious which is a good thing. Keep them on their toes wondering what we're up to."
The suggestion had pleased Cameron. John's newfound attentiveness was fun for both of them and Sarah had given Cameron several excellent tips on flirting with John. Replaying the conversation reminded Cameron how much things had changed.
"Why didn't you teach me this when John and I were dating," Cameron had asked.
Sarah's response had been to give Cameron a knowing look.
"Yeah, I was the enemy back then. I don't always run those memory files. I guess you could say I forget how things were sometimes."
"Well, you aren't now, that's the main thing. I have so much left to teach you so I can be certain you can manage and the clan and family will thrive. Not that you don't do a good job now because you do."
It was not until Sarah had left and Cameron had taken the short walk to her bench that her processor reached the conclusion Sarah was concerned about mortality as a result of the aging process. In the past her fear of death had centered around Terminators controlled by Skynet or contracting cancer.
Doctor Johnson had allayed Cameron's fears by confirming Sarah was in excellent health, far better than average for a human female her age, especially considering the number of times she had been seriously wounded. Sarah was simply beginning to show signs of aging.
Life had moved quickly Cameron realized. A concept she found difficult to grasp given she measured time with her internal chronometer without error.
She'd been built, programmed, killed Allison, captured, reprogrammed, sent back in time by Future John to protect her John. She'd saved both her John and Sarah from Cromatie, sent the trio of them forward in time, and protected John while they went to school and eventually married. She'd stood by his side since Judgment Day, adopted and raised Hailey and witnessed two Skynet Death's by her own hand.
Now she sat in the park of the city her John had envisioned before Judgment Day, built by the hands of both humans and Terminators. Her relationship with her John had once been forbidden and now, while not great in number, hybrid couples now openly dated. Families with children had aged T-600s to help with the child rearing process.
Agent Ellison had been complaining to her earlier in the week that something had to be done about writing and uploading protocols about appropriate interaction between the T-600s when it came to their charges. Like human parents, several of the T-600s had become competitive with other T-600s about the accomplishments of the children they protected.
"I can't assign M.P.s to the school during dismissal time Cameron. One is it. I shouldn't have to assign any given the fact T-600s bring and pick up the students. But I can't have Terminators, even old, T-600s who are no longer on active combat status getting in fights with each other. They pose a public hazard Cameron."
She had agreed and promised something would be done. Cameron had a good laugh in private when the Old Man had simply ignored her when she mentioned it to him. She and John both knew the Old Man was guilty of believing both Hailey and Ruth were superior to all the other TechCom young adults of similar age. For machines who had been designed not to feel emotion, so many of Skynet's creations had deviated from their baseline programming it was driving Savannah and the other's who treated the Terminators nuts trying to understand how the metal population of TechCom was evolving.
Cameron still did not consider herself human and still had no desire to become human. Watching a young mother let her two sons splash in the water of the pond, Cameron realized she had become a nearly fully actualized person. Not human, metal, a cyborg made of Coltan steel, human flesh and blood and a collection of other components. She'd learned, developed and grown.
Thinking of the close relationship between Hailey and Ruth, Cameron realized how humanlike Ruth was in comparison to Cameron. New immigrants upon meeting the two young women had to be told Ruth was a T-1000. The few newly manufactured T-800s had far better infiltration skills and social skills than Cameron possessed until she had been married to John for several years.
Ruth had been pestering Savannah about the idea Savannah advanced of Ruth carrying a T-1000 child as if she were pregnant. The leadership council had decided with the dramatically expanded territory after the victory over Skynet Northwest that the military had to have more T-1000s.
Catherine was no longer on combat status, leaving only Ruth. With the supply of Model 4 matrix on hand, and Ruth's apparently immanent engagement, the topic had been cropping up repeatedly.
Catherine, Ruth and Savannah all felt many of the issues surrounding the dangers inherent in T-1000s could be alleviated by having Ruth "carry" her child for a period of time. The process of separating child from mother would be the birthing process for a T-1000.
Savannah argued to the horror of Sarah and Derek, that developmentally it would speed the process of up considerably in appropriate socialization of the infant T-1000. Fearful something would happen to their adopted daughter, Sarah and Derek were utterly opposed.
"Nonsense. Imprinting is far more important. Carrying her infant will allow her child to fully imprint on Ruth as its mother, just as Ruth imprinted on you Sarah. Sleeping with her Lt. Dan at night should allow the infant to imprint on him as its human father. This will give everyone involved initial safeguards that will limit its natural inclinations as a T-1000."
Not everything was perfect in community life in TechCom. Terminators still went bad and sometimes had to be destroyed. But it was accepted now by the human citizens, who by far made up the majority of TechCom's population. Humans went bad too, and had to be tried and punished in the courts.
Strife and conflict it appeared were a part of life and unavoidable. Poor Agent Ellison and Father Hidalgo were aging faster than they should due to overwork. It had fallen on the pair to create the fledgling arbitration system that handled civil disputed among the citizens of the city.
Citizens of the city. Citizens of the nation.
Cameron wiggled her toes again and slipped her boots on.
Life had certainly changed in ways she had not expected. Before Judgment Day she only wanted to marry her John and protect him. Keep him alive so he could lead the resistance to defeat Skynet.
Now she was a citizen of a nation. Not just a citizen, but also one of that nation's leaders. A nation that had only been a germ of an idea in her John's mind long before Judgment Day.
Cameron reflected on how difficult her existence had been. She also reflected on how wonderful and fulfilling her existence was. How different the life she lived was from what she would have imagined when Future John sent her back in time.
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's Revenge
Cameron versus the Queen
Cameron versus Derek (short story)
Cameron: Fights Past and Present - A Collection of Short Stories
Cameron's Treasures (short story)
Cameron and the Black Bird
Cameron and John's Wedding
Who's the Boss?
The Storm Before the Calm