Disclaimer: I don't own anything, please don't sue me!
October 28, 2007
Aboard Rozinante
John Connor was sitting on his bed, connecting both of his PlayStation 3 systems to his laptop when Cameron entered. Taking a bet that her electronic ears were good enough to hear through the walls, he asked her, "So, what do you think of the new cover stories?"
Cameron asked him, "New ID's soon?"
John was surprised to find out that she hadn't heard. "You didn't hear through the walls or something?"
"Our rooms may be next to each other, but I was… preoccupied."
He was curious. "What was on your mind?"
Running a million scenarios through her processor, she nervously asked him, "Does Sarah know about us?"
"Yeah. Apparently, Derek thought this might happen, and told her about the possibility. She asked me what you meant by me being more than an objective to you, and I told her. She also knows that nothing's going to change that."
Relieved that Sarah wouldn't try to scrap her immediately, she replied, "Thank you, John. I don't know how she would have handled hearing it from me."
"She would have been in a state of total denial about it, until she stumbled across us kissing or something like that."
She chuckled, surprised that the action came unbidden by what humans would refer to as her 'conscious' mind. "John, I've been trying to determine why I do certain things without directly commanding myself to do so."
"Like what?"
"Smile, chuckle, beat up Derek, distrust Durandal, other similar things."
John thought for a minute, then asked, "Cam, can your AI rewrite itself?"
"Yes it can, why do you ask?"
"Well, that might explain smiling without commanding yourself to do it. It's what we call a 'subconscious mind.'"
"Thank you for explaining."
"I understand beating up Derek, but what about Durandal?"
"I cannot identify why I don't think he is trustworthy. Maybe it's what you call 'gut instinct.'"
"Somehow I don't think you'd approve of having him loose in your code, nor would I."
"No, I don't approve of having an AI that has not told us his agenda altering my code without my knowledge or consent." She moved to sit next to John and put her arm around him. Looking him in the eyes, she whispered, "I love you, John. I don't want anything to change that."
John Connor had never known happiness in his entire life until the moment in Seattle when Cameron admitted that she loved him. Embracing her he said, "I love you too, Cameron. I'm not going to let anything or anyone mess with your code." He kissed her, and poured all his passion into it.
Cameron responded in kind, then they pulled away only when John needed air. She asked him, "Am I good for you, John?"
Regaining his breath, he replied, "Yes you are, Cam."
"Thank you. It means a lot to hear you say that." Changing the subject, she inquired, "How much progress have you made on your Terminator hacking setup?"
"Well, I'm going to ask Durandal if he can design a USB adapter for the CPUs. That'll make it easier to examine what's on the chips."
"Plug and play interfaces make dealing with computers easier for those of us who aren't based on computers ourselves."
John laughed, then asked her, "Are you developing a sense of humor?"
"It'll expand with time and contact with others."
Unbeknownst to both of them, Durandal was listening in and thought to himself, 'It's not like they pose a threat, but they won't just go along with me examining her code without some… convincing. Dave would be too obvious, maybe I should let one of SkyNet's agents on Earth do the job for me.'
Sarah Connor heard a knock at her door and said, "Come in."
Derek Reese strode in and asked her, "What did I miss?"
"You were right about him falling for her. Oddly enough, her AI is more advanced than SkyNet, if what I'm hearing from them is to be believed."
Derek wasn't surprised. "And 'her' AI being super-capable means what?"
"Apparently, she feels the same way about him, Derek. Not to mention hating your guts, which I would understand from anyone or anything. Did you actually do any of those things she mentioned outside of the insults?"
"Damn right I tried to scrap the metal. That's what you do with them!"
"Derek, you keep up with that kind of campaign against her and John may not be able to keep you alive. Did you ever stop to think about self-preservation?"
Derek coldly told her, "You know nothing yet, Sarah. When you've seen and experienced the horrors any of us in the future have, you write yourself off as a walking corpse."
"Maybe, but these are pre-Judgment Day times. We need you to teach John more about fighting the machines, and keep him alive. That means keeping yourself in working order, which means knock off the bullshit toward Cameron, got it?!"
"Nothing will stop me in scrapping her."
Sarah pondered for a minute, then she snapped, "You're no better than your enemy, Reese. You're just an organic machine!"
Derek had had enough. "Fuck this. I don't care if you are St. Sarah Connor, NO ONE CALLS ME A MACHINE!"
Just then the door burst open and Cameron made a beeline for Derek. He turned around and John watched as she punched him in the chest and sent him flying straight into the wall.
"John was right. You have gone bad. Were it not for the emotions, you would have made a fine Terminator."
"RUST IN HELL METAL BITCH!"
John stepped in before his mom or girlfriend could kill him. "Derek, if you have a brain left in there, you'd better use it or I won't be able to keep Cameron from killing you!"
"FUCK YOU CONNOR!" With that Derek leveled his .44 at John's head.
"You and your precious pet robots… I'm surprised SkyNet hasn't tried to recruit you, metal-lover!"
Cameron stepped around John and grabbed Derek by the throat. She banged his head against the wall, knocking him out before anyone could say anything.
Cameron asked him, "John, why do you keep him around? He hated you for sending Kyle back, and also for reprogramming Terminators to fight for the Resistance. What makes you think that being his nephew will save you?"
John was shocked that Derek had acted out the way he did, but not surprised that his uncle wasn't happy about Kyle being sent to his death. "I don't know. Then again," he looked over at Sarah, "it's just like humans to at least try to destroy their best chance."
Sarah remembered the garage in 1994, when she had the sledgehammer in hand and was about to destroy the CPU of the Terminator later known as 'Uncle Bob.' The only thing that stopped her was John and his insistence that they needed the Terminator. He had been right, but she still didn't like it. "John, he's your uncle for crying out loud!"
John was on the express jet to his dark side. "Biologically, yes. Other than that, he's just a machine in meatbag form. He makes me wonder sometimes."
Cameron looked into John's eyes and asked, "What does Derek make you wonder about?"
John coldly replied, "Is the race of animals that call themselves humanity worth saving?"