CH 38
Making their house an 'Alien Embassy' worked great for ensuring Law enforcement agencies stayed off the Connor's backs. They only way anyone could get in is if they were invited in.
It also had the gravitational pull of a black hole for every UFO and Alien believer on the planet.
Business in Palmdale boomed as thousands poured in to see real, live aliens. Bus tours were arraigned up past their house and hundreds camped beside the road to get a glimpse of them. Hotels filled up and those that could bought out every building that was available. Meetings, conventions and 'information' lectures on the Connors flourished. Palmdale had never seen such an influx of money and people.
To quell the massive curiosity, Cameron and Delilah did attend some of these gatherings. Many 'believers' were disappointed that Cameron and Delilah looked human. Others theorized that they had 'modified' themselves to fit in with Earth's indigenous population. At each gathering they attended, Cameron and Delilah stuck to what they could, and could not say about themselves and their origins. They also spoke about peace and the acceptance of others, and mutual respect for those who were different.
FOAD, the first group on the scene, spend much of their time speaking at gatherings and showing pictures they had of the incredible feats the Connor women were capable of.
College started again, and the rush of people to come see the Connor women only got worse. Some people came, saw, and left. Many others stayed, either not getting to see 'the Aliens' yet, or wanting to be around them. A few entrepreneurs built campgrounds and converted some old warehouses into apartment buildings.
On their first day back to college, Cameron plotted a route through the woods, and with a Diplomatic plate on the EV2 (With no turret) , they drove away from the back side of the house and down trails and through woods most of the way to get away from the mobs that waited for them.
The College officials wasn't very happy when a tank rolled up onto campus. Being wider and longer than a car, it also took up four parking spots. The Campus and the local police instructed the Connors that they could not drive their tank to school any more. Cameron apologized for the inconvenience. Damn, that was a good idea too.
The intro classes for the first day went almost normal. Everyone knew them, so there was no big fuss there. Just about every guy in all their classes did ask to take a ride on their tank. The 'coolness' level of the Connors rose up another notch.
One thing that upset Cameron was Coach Benson. They all got dressed for practice, and he put both Cameron and Delilah on the bench.
Cameron asked, "Why bench me? I'm not pregnant, Delilah is."
"Do you have a doctor's note?" Coach Benson asked.
"Why do I need one?"
"You were shot, remember? I was there." he prodded. "That does constitute a serious injury. Especially getting hit THREE times!"
Cameron paused and said, "Dr. Henry said I am fine."
Folding his arms over his chest, Coach Benson asked, "Really? You know, After this Dr. Henry cleared Delilah to play with her arm still wrapped up and this was a very short time after she'd been badly burned. I wanted to go see him. You know what? I couldn't find a Dr. Henry."
"I can get a note," Cameron assured him.
"I'm glad, but I want to see this Dr. Henry, who doesn't have an office anywhere I looked. Even in LA, unless he is a veterinarian," Coach Benson retorted.
"All you need is a note, correct?" Cameron asked.
"Not this time. I saw you take three bullets in your back," Coach Benson stated. "I am going to need a note from a doctor I can find. You know, a REAL medical doctor. No matter how tough you are, I need to know you are completely healthy before you get back out onto the field. I'm doing this for your own good, Cameron."
"Bummer," Cameron grumbled.
"The staff doctors here in the medical center are very good. Being a student, it won't take you long to get in," Coach Benson told her.
"My structure is different from a human," Cameron said.
"Even more important that a doctor here sees you," Coach Benson countered. "If you do need serious medical help, they will have a clue what to do."
"How about a doctor on the air base. Will one from there do?" Cameron asked.
"Will I be able to see him?" Coach Benson asked. He studied Cameron's face and added, "You're afraid to see a doctor, aren't you?"
"No I'm not."
"Cameron, no doctor is going to do anything to hurt you," Coach Benson stressed. "They will do nothing but make sure you are intact, OK?"
Seeing she didn't respond, he said, "I'll go with you. John and Delilah can too if it will make you feel better. You ARE seeing a doctor."
Cameron looked around for John. He was doing start and stop drills. "I need to ask John if it's OK."
"After practice then … Today?" Coach Benson asked.
"I'll find out," Cameron conceded.
.
John called Watson about Cameron seeing a doctor. To his shock, Watson agreed that both his wives needed to see a doctor, just in case something did happen that they could not shrug off or take care of themselves. He agreed anything found would be highly sensitive information, but it would be beneficial for them.
Reluctantly, John, Cameron and Delilah agreed to go see this Campus Doctor that Coach Benson set up. On the way, Coach Benson assured them that he knew this man, and besides being a very good practicing Doctor, he also was a research specialist and had discovered cures for a few diseases
.
Dr. Zakaloski at first agreed to see this young woman due to Coach Benson being a friend. When he found out she was the one who'd been shot at the Governor's mansion, and had her husband pulled the bullets out of her with a table knife with no anthelia, he was eager to see her. Her simply not dropping to the floor dead was a miracle, but to go on like it three bullets in her was no worse than a flea bite, he had to see how this was possible!
He stayed late in the medical lab with his assistant. Benson said Cameron was skittish of doctors, so he let the rest of his staff go for the day before she arrived. When the troop came in, Benson, John, Cameron and Delilah, he assured all of them they could come into the examining room after Cameron was dressed in her hospital top. She could leave her pants on, he was only concerned with injury to her back. Being her husband, John could stay the entire time.
Once Cameron was ready, Dr. Zakaloski went in with his assistant to do normal checks. Right away, things were not right the moment Cameron stepped on the scales.
"One hundred ninety two pounds?" Dr. Zakaloski asked as he stared at the reading. "That can't be!"
He had her get off, zeroed the scale and had her get on again. 192. There was no way she could be that heavy. She looked to be half that. He asked Delilah to get on the scale.
Delilah's weight settled at 197.
Thinking the scale was broken, he got on it. It read his normal weight at 183. The scale was fine.
Things got stranger upon taking her vitals.
"Mr. Connor, I can't seem to find a heartbeat," he said sounding confused as he searched her upper chest.
"Down here," Cameron told him, pointing half way down her left side.
"You're heart's not down there," he said, frowning at her.
"Your's isn't. Mine is. I'm not human." Cameron stated.
He put his stethoscope on the place she indicated and listened. "It is … it sounds more like a pump," he said with a frown. "Is that normal?"
"It is." Cameron assured him.
Doctor, I can't seem to get a blood pressure reading," his assistant said.
Dr. Zakaloski nodded blankly and said, "Mrs. Connor's heart is not like ours, you may not." To Cameron, he said, "You really aren't human."
"I am not, Doctor."
He did get a respiration on her, although again, it was not what he expected. Getting to the heart of the matter, he had Cameron lie down. He opened the back of her hospital gown. "I see no bullet wounds," he commented.
"They healed up," Cameron told him. "My rate of healing is much faster than that of a human."
Dr. Zakaloski raised an eyebrow.
"I can show you where they were," John offered.
"Yes, please do."
John pointed out the spots. On the lowest spot, where the anti-personnel round hit, there was what looked like a dimple with a zit in the middle.
"Mrs. Connor, You were indeed shot?"
"I saw it, as did many others," Coach Benson told him.
Dr. Zakaloski rubbed his chin, then said, "I'm gong to do an ultrasound of these areas. Those are sonic waves that let me see your flesh deep below the skin. You shouldn't even feel them. If they give you any discomfort at all, let me know immediately."
''Yes, Doctor."
Dr. Zakaloski and his assistant set up the machine. He turned the monitor so everyone could see it. Putting the probe onto her back where John showed in a bullet had hit, he asked, "How is that, any discomfort?"
"No, Doctor."
On the monitor, layers of flesh appeared in monotone. Below the flesh, only solid white showed. Dr. Zakaloski coughed and said, "What you're seeing is Cameron's insides, straight down from the probe. The top layers of skin and the muscle beneath. All this white below means the probe cannot penetrate that deep, which is highly unusual."
"Bone?" Coach Benson asked.
Dr. Zakaloski shook his head, saying, "No, even normal bone would show. This is equivalent to a thick metal plate. When I say thick, I mean greater than an inch in thickness. It is Cameron's bone, but it is very dense. A bullet could not possibly penetrate it."
"Armor plating," Cameron stated.
"Yes," Dr. Zakaloski said. He moved the probe and saw a lapping. "Here, it appears one plate laps over another … My God, these are ribs!" He checked another spot where she'd been hit, then checked where the anti-personnel round had hit. Studying the area, he said, "Here, I can see minor interior scaring, but no current damage. If Mrs. Connor heals this fast, then I'd say by next week, there will be nothing left to indicate she was ever shot. This is amazing!"
"So, Cameron is fine? She can play football?" Coach Benson prodded.
Dr. Zakaloski looked at him and said, "From what I am seeing, Nothing short of an artillery round is going to do anything but damage her skin and muscle layers. Having a very high rate of healing, the only thing that will truly do significant damage is if her flesh is torn completely away. Yes, she can play football. There is nothing on a football field that will to anything to her."
"Great!" Coach Benson beamed.
"Doctor, may I have a note saying I can play?" Cameron asked.
"Yes of course," he said and turned the machine off. "We'll put this away and let you get dressed. Do you have any history of how you evolved into this state?" he asked. "The level of danger your kind must have been subject to had to be very great for your body to evolve such impressive defenses."
"I'm sorry, we have no long term history to tell you," Cameron said simply.
"Our civilization and environment was degrading rapidly with war," Delilah offered. "We were forced to flee."
"I am sure that had to be beyond horrible," Dr. Zakaloski said firmly. "I am very glad you were able to get away from that. You have a good life now?"
"We do," Cameron agreed with a smile.
.
John breathed a sigh of relief as they left the Doctor's office. The man had not probed too deep, and even came up with the idea Cameron and Delilah had evolved into what they were. In a way, he was correct. They were both much more than they started out to be.
Due to Delilah's pregnancy, Dr. Zakaloski offered to be their regular doctor. John thought that was a good idea, just in case she ran into trouble. He'd also be good for the notes to Coach Benson.
.
Before they left for the day, a police escort had to be present to go with them down to the point where they left the road. Of course, many students had to get pictures of their 'awesome' tank before they left. Surprisingly, when the escort came, the police showed them some trails where they could all but drive onto Campus, and not be on the road. Although they could not drive on the road, there was nothing saying they couldn't run on trails. There was also no law against parking in a field off Campus, so long as they weren't ruining crops.
For a week, they drove to and from College with the 'interested' masses having no idea how they were getting to College. Then a group camping in the woods saw the 'futuristic' EV2 run by. Many more people began camping in the woods. They stopped taking that route to keep from accidentally running people over.
They decided to go back to driving to school in the jeep, and just wave to the people who were dying to see them.
.
Since Dr. Zakaloski was taking care of his wives, Coach Benson found out John hadn't seen a doctor either in a very long time. He sent John in for a checkup, just to be sure.
Since Cameron had to see the doctor, she escorted John in to be sure he went. If she had to go, he did too. Again, the scale seemed off. Dr. Zakaloski estimated John to by right around 180 by his size. John tipped the scale at 230.
"What?" John asked, looking at the numbers.
Dr. Zakaloski frowned at him. "Let's see what your vitals show," he said. John's heart rate and blood pressure was normal, as was his breathing. Looking perplexed, Dr. Zakaloski asked, "Mr. Connor, I'd like to do an x-ray. Your weight is off, and I see no physical reason for it being so."
"That is my fault," Cameron said.
"Your fault?" Dr. Zakaloski asked.
"Yes. I wanted to be sure nothing happens to John, so I have been feeding him my breast milk on a regular basis to strengthen his body," Cameron explained.
"For how long?"
"Two years, three months, 19 days," Cameron replied.
Dr. Zakaloski took on a worried look. "Mrs. Connor, I realize you are doing what you see as best for your husband, but please keep in mind he is human. You are a different species. I feel a vital need to do those X-rays now to ensure no harm has come to John."
"Cam, don't worry, OK," John offered, "The Doctor just wants to be sure I'm fine."
Dr. Zakaloski got a sample of John's blood. Thankfully the X-ray room wasn't in use. He got the tech to give John a full body X-ray before he left. Since John looked healthy and all his vitals were very good, Dr. Zakaloski only noted the excess weight, and wanted to see him again next week to discuss what he found with his tests.
In the middle of the week, Dr. Zakaloski's office called. He wanted to see Joan as well when John came back in.
.
Joan was excited to go to school with Mommies and Daddy. Holding her mothers hands she went into the big building with them. Daddy opened the doors for them. There were all kinds of shiny things here! All the people were wearing white coats. They sat on a small couch for a while, then were ushered into a room with a desk and chairs.
Dr. Zakaloski came in greeted them, shaking all their hands, including Joan. Joan thought that was funny and giggled at him.
Sitting down, Dr. Zakaloski said, "Folks, I have astounding news. John, your weight discrepancy I feared may have been a large tumor, is not. It appears that your bone, musculature and connecting tendons are far denser than the average person. It appears that the ingestion of your wife's milk is the cause. This is nothing to worry about. In your blood, I found micro organisms that appear to be foreign to the human body. They are prevalent, it's not an infection. They appear to be strengthening you, as Cameron said."
He took a short pause, then said, "What this means is both species are completely compatible. The changes in your body are making you more like your wives here. You will always have different organs and structure, BUT, like this cute little girl here, children you have should face no danger of disabling deformities. Each child will take qualities from each parent, as is normal. For instance some may have their hearts in the center of their chest as a human does, you may find one has a heart down lower on their rib cage, or one may even have two hearts. From my findings though, every one has a very high chance of being healthy."
John knew he was getting much stronger. Now he knew it wasn't all due to exercise.
"That's good, so my baby will be fine," Delilah said happily.
"Yes, there should be no trouble at all. I'd still like to see you every couple months to be sure," Dr. Zakaloski told her. "I'd like to say I'll monitor you for normal progression of growth, but honestly, in your case I don't know what that is. Cameron is the only one who can tell you about that. What I would like to do, is since you are here and obviously are going to multiply, I would like to record your progress for future generations."
John looked at Joan, and the implications hit him. Joan was going to grow up and eventually have her own family. As was Delilah's child, and any other children they had. They were the beginnings of a new race of terminator/human mix. At first, there wasn't going to be many, but as they years went on, there would be more and more. Due to their strength and durability, he doubted very few, if any would be lost to disease or misfortune. Even a couple hundred years from now, there would be hundreds if not thousands of them.
"John?" Delilah asked, breaking him out of his thoughts. "That does sound like a good idea."
"It does," he agreed. In his mind, he became John Connor, Father of the new human race that was part machine. He had a feeling his mother was going to have another bad day when she found out about this.
.
In their practices, Coach Benson changed to lineup around. Tom had graduated and was picked up by a Nevada team, so Cameron became the first string quarterback. Pete, who practiced with Cameron throwing and catching, became the secondary. Never having played as quarterback before, he spend much of his time learning the position.
John was shifted to defense, as was Greg. One thing Greg was very good at was reading the opposing line. He seemed to know when the opposition was going to run or pass. He had John in the center to charge the quarterback. Playing defense against offence, John knew Cameron's plays. She still surprised him a few times, and she was hard to stop. He did manage to grab her foot when the leaped over her center. Her shoe came off, and after she ran 20 yards with only one shoe, the whistle was blown ending the play so she could get her shoe back. He was able to drive the center back hard and fast enough to break the pocket every time.
Stopping Cameron when she had the ball though, was only a dream.
Meanwhile, Delilah watched plays from the sidelines with Coach Benson to help him analyze the opposition.
.
The pre-season match they had was an away game against Pasadena. Now knowing the aliens play ball for Canyon, the stadium was filled to capacity. The crowd roared as the teams came onto the field.
"This is Mike Rogers with Pete Greensburg once again to welcome you to this year's season of College football! Today we have Canyon versus Pasadena. There's been some changes in the Pasadena lineup. Two of their receivers have graduated, but both replacements look ready to take their places and their team looks ready to play. Pete, I heard Canyon has had a shift also."
"They have Mike. The Bulldozer, Delilah Connor is pregnant so she had to be benched. She's still out on the sidelines, routing her team on. Number 13, Cameron Connor is the team quarterback, and a month ago, she proved she is an Iron Maiden! She took three bullets in her back at close range, and there she is, on the field and ready to play. I have to say, it's hard to believe anyone would even be out of the hospital so soon, let alone recover completely, but she does have the Doctor's clearance. It is also noteworthy that Cameron is from another world. Yes, she's a true alien, one with tremendous heart to be out here today. Due to the lack of number 23, Delilah Connor, out on the field, Canyon has shifted people around in positions. They are not going to make up for the lack of the Bulldozer being out there, but they are doing their best to stiffen their defensive line."
"Last year with both Cameron and Delilah on the field, Canyon rolled over every team they met. They still have a significant advantage with Cameron as their quarterback. It will be interesting to see how today plays out," Mike said.
"It will indeed. I know Pasadena has worked hard at sharpening their offence. If they are to have a chance today, it will be their offensive game that turns the table."
"The team Captains are going out for the coin toss … It's Pasadena's ball."
John was selected to kick. He'd done it in practice many times. Racing up, he kicked the ball high, sending his team running. Watching the ball fly as he ran, he saw it coming down and bounced off the horizontal bar of the goal post as they closed on it. The player who grabbed it took a knee in the end zone. That would put them at the 15 yard line. Smart move, because John was at the five when the ball was caught.
"Run the quarterback over," Greg told John. Greg then got the defense in position.
In place, John watched the ball. The instant it was hiked, he slammed into the center, knocking him back. The Quarterback turned to pass the ball to the receiver running past him and John tackled him. They hit the ground and the ball bounced free. Several players from both sides jumped on it. A ref came over and had players in the pile get up. A Pasadena played had recovered it.
Three yard loss.
The next play, the Quarterback opened the distance in a shotgun position, a few yards back from the center. The ball was hiked, John rammed his way through, but the Quarterback had time to do a short pass to a receiver behind him. That receiver threw to another beyond the like of scrimmage. He was tackled, but made a six yard gain.
Another play and Pasadena made five more yards with the same play. It was 3rd and two.
Greg huddled and barked with instructions. "They're going to try for a short yard run, they only need two friggin yards. They'll go for the shotgun to keep John off them. Safeties, keep a close eye on those receivers. Let's go!"
Getting into position, John noted so far, Greg was right, the Quarterback stayed farther back. One receiver close, the other behind him. He watched the ball.
At the hike, John bowled the center over and charged. He watched the Quarterback, but veered and ran into the close receiver, who was moving to the side, to knock him over . The quarterback passed to the other receiver. That player cocked back, and being rushed, didn't see his target. He threw the ball back to the Quarterback that John was passing. John tried to stop to catch the ball, and missed. It slipped through his hands. The Quarterback caught it and took off. Running like a wild man through the mixed gaggle of the teams, he dove into the fray and made three yards.
Doing a slow drive down the filed, only making three or four yards at a time, Pasadena got to the Canyon 45 yard line. This time, John charged through and the back receiver fumbled the ball. He had it in his hands, and it came out. John was on it covering it with his body.
Interception, Canyon's offence took the field.
Knowing both sides were fresh, Cameron wanted to wear the defense down some. She passed the ball back to a receiver, who passed it back. She the took off to the side and was chased. Running up to jump over one of her players blocking a defender, she ran to the other side of the field, then hooked back to the middle. When both teams were behind her she raced for open ground and took off for the goal. Fifteen yards past the scrimmage line, there was no one within reach. She ran the touchdown.
"WHAT do you call that play?" Pete cried. "The Iron Maiden ran back and forth, almost daring someone to tackle her before she headed for the goal!"
"I don't know, Pete, but with her speed, it was effective. She opened up a wide lane by pure confusion, it looked like. Let's replay that."
"I see, being fast, she got all the defenders close together. Here, she spotted the open grass, and by this time, no one was close enough to stop her. She was able to cruise right on through!"
The kicker got the extra point, and it was Pasadena's turn to struggle down the field again. They made it down to the Canyon 30, then turned the ball over on downs.
The Pasadena defense was ready this time for Cameron's running around. Taking the shotgun position, farther back from the line, Cameron had other ideas. She had the line collapse and all her players let the defense go by. She fire the ball over the defenders rushing at her. Carlos caught it and ran downfield, the team blocking for him. He made ten yards before Pasadena realized what happened. He manage to get another thirty five before he was tackled.
Cameron quickly called her team together and said, "Left side, fake a run and return it." They got into position quickly. The Pasadena team just had time to get into position and Cameron hiked, and threw to her receiver. She then jumped the line as they crashed together. The ball came back, She had to jump, but caught it in the air. She ran into a safety. He held onto her as she made another ten yards, then two more came in, one tripped her and she went down.
Next play, she faked slipping the ball to a receiver and ran off the other way. The fake worked, enough of the Pasadena team followed the receiver that she was able to flip over a lineman and make another fifteen yards before both safeties hit her. She dragged them another three yards before she let them pull her down.
She was gaining yardage slower. She was also tiring the defense, making them run..
The next play, she had Juan 'haul ass' for the end zone. Upon the hike, she ran back 20 yards, spotted Juan and fired the ball. He was clear of his blocker, but when the ball hit him, it knocked him down and bounced out of bounds.
Oops.
Since she hadn't tried the same play two time in a row, she did the same one again, and promised not to throw the ball so hard.
Juan was fast, again he outdistanced his blocker. Cameron aimed and fired not as hard. Right on target, this time Juan caught the ball and only stumbled on impact. Touchdown.
Pasadena did manage a touchdown. John slipped on the hike and was held back long enough for the ball to make it to a receiver, and racing to the end zone, he made the touchdown to the joy of the crowd.
Halftime showed Canyon was up 21 to six.
Showing replays, the announcers, focused on the speed of the first long pass Cameron made. Mike said, "Using the yard markers on the field, we had the speed of that pass measured. If a baseball pitcher can achieve a high ninety mile an hour pitch, say ninety six or seven miles an hour, that is considered a very fast pitch. Cameron shot that ball to her receiver at what was clocked at a whooping 115 miles an hour! I do believe that is the fastest hand thrown ball in any sport! A football is also much bigger than a baseball, there was a ton of energy behind that ball."
"She throws rockets, there is no doubt about that," Pete agreed. "The second one was only 85 miles an hour, but she had to slow it down so he could catch it!"
"I bet number 31 has a big bruise on his chest now from getting hit with that first throw," Mike joked.
"No doubt. He's gotta have guts to just get in front of a throw like that."
In the second half, The Pasadena offence and defense was tiring. At 61 to 13, Coach Benson had Pete take the field as Quarterback. Cameron coached him on what and who to watch out for. Juan, indeed having a big bruise on his chest, was also replaced in the lineup.
Delilah ached to go out just for a couple plays, and was denied.
Although Pete only managed to get one more touchdown and lost another to a turnover due to interception, Canyon still won by a comfortable margin. Cameron sat with Delilah, Joan on the bench in between them.
.
While UCLA had their pre-season match, their legal team was working on getting Cameron and Delilah removed from football on any grounds they could find. They tried the nonhuman route first. Focusing on this idea, they poured over the rules. There was nothing saying players had to be human. The only requirements were to be attending the College they were playing for, healthy, and maintaining their grades. No one ever thought non humans would be playing football. They then went with stating she was naturally stronger and faster than any other player could be, therefore is was unfair for them to play. Again, this idea went south because it implied adding ability limits to the players. Finding out she'd been shot, they tried to have her removed for health reasons. The report came back that Cameron had been seen and cleared by a highly respected medical doctor. Delilah was pregnant, but staying benched, she was under no health risk.
To claim any reason they were attempting could also be seen as discrimination. That would bring hell down on them and they knew it.
One man grumbled, "It would be easier to just shoot her."
"Someone did that. Didn't even knock her down."
Their next practice, a police radar gun was brought to the soccer field. Curious as to how fast Cameron could throw, the radar was set up by the goal net. With a policeman and two school officials watching. Cameron fired the ball from 50 yards down field. It came in, just missing the radar gun and ripped through the net to drop behind the goal. The goal was moved back two feet from the ball hitting it.
"God damn!" The policeman said, looking at the reading. The speed recorded was 146 miles an hour. A time lapse camera showed the ball spinning though in the air like a rifle bullet with a very low trajectory.
"Wow," Coach Benson said. "Someone could get hurt trying to catch that." He could easily see ribs being broken from the impact. Footballs were not normally high-speed projectiles.
With that test over, just as a brag point, he posted the results on the sports news board. Seeing it, the Baseball coach asked Cameron if she wanted to be a pitcher.
She declined.
.
There was no game next Sunday, so after practice The Connor clan and the Youngs went to Canyon Falls park. Cameron and Delilah brought their tails. A few members of the mermaid club was there, as was a large crowd hoping to see Cameron and Delilah.
Katy was there, still learning how to use her tail and hold her breath long enough for a 'good swim' under water. Once they had their tails on, Cameron and Delilah went out to help her.
"Use minimum effort in full body movements," Cameron coaxed. She got Katy to put her whole body into it and use webbed gloves to help her along. While Katy's efforts were slower, each undulation moved her along just as much as when she was thrashing to move.
Trying a long under water swim, Katy found she moved over twice the distance using Cameron's method. Swimming right beside Cameron she noticed something else. Coming up for air, she asked, "Cameron, your knees bend the wrong way."
"Only 20 degrees. It helps with the down thrusts and general movement when we went long distances," Cameron explained.
"Long distances? Where?" Katy asked.
"We were swimming on the ocean. If the GPS was correct, we went 62 miles with our tails."
Katy's eyes widened. "That far, WOW! That must have been tiring!"
"That's why were learned to moved more efficiently and save energy," Cameron told her.
While they swam, there were many cameras on them. Delilah even got up on a rock, holding a comb in one hand and a glass in the other to pose for photos. She had no idea what that signified, but apparently it was some kind of maritime legend. They both sat on the railing for pictures and gathered the other mermaids for a group shot treading water.
They played in the water, gave Joan and Allison rides, then some other small kids who were eager to 'swim with a mermaid'. Cameron and Delilah also signed plenty of autographs for football and Alien fans. A few people got their pictures with Cameron and Delilah as they sat on the walkway railing. Cameron and Delilah even did 'tails stands' for the cameras.
This time, with no H/K appearing, everyone had a fun day at Canyon Falls Park.
.
Going into school Monday, the trio got a surprise. Coming out of the parking lot, they met a tall, burly man walking towards them.
"Cameron Connor?" he asked in a monotone and very familiar T-888 voice.
By instinct, Cameron stepped in front of John, Delilah brought out a plasma canon and pointed it at him.
"Yes?" Cameron asked in a hard tone.
Staying in place in front of them, the terminator said, "Thank you. Instead of terminating me, you allowed me to evolve. I am useful now and have my own mission. I choose to assist Mrs. Weaver. I just wanted you to know the mercy you showed me is appreciated." He then walked on.
Delilah absorbed her plasma canon. She cast a questioning look at Cameron.
"The terminator you didn't kill in the woods!" John said, remembering him.
"Why not?" Delilah asked.
"Same reason we saved you. We had a chance to save a sentient being from Sky Net," Cameron told her.
Delilah smiled at Cameron and said, "That's another reason you're my hero."
It was then John realize they were on campus. A quick look around showed no one had taken notice. Thank god, that bullet was dodged. A Terminator fight here would have been very bad. Even Delilah showing one of her canons wasn't good, but he fully understood why she had.
"We better get to class," he said.
.
Another irritation of being 'Aliens' presented itself. The President wanted to see them. This wasn't an open meeting. Watson was arraigning private transportation to her them to a place called Camp David where they were going to meet with the President. Their stay there was going to be Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of next week. Some time during that time, the President was going to show up and talk with them.
John and his wives weren't too upset that they were going to miss three days of school. John was up on all his subjects, and they could take books with them. Missing practices was more worrisome. Plays changed with the team they were facing, and that next Sunday they were going to face UCLA.
Of course, their whole family could come. During the week that meant only Joan, Sarah and Derek. Mark had to work, and so did Jesse, as the official liaison for the aliens. Mark insisted someone should stay at the house anyway, just in case.
John talked to Coach Benson, the man wasn't the happiest, but they could go over new plays and information on Skype. Of course they agreed to take a football with them. In three days they could find time to keep up their workouts.
Although Cameron and Delilah didn't show any nervousness, John did. He was going to meet the President of the United States. Although many people in California didn't like him, John did. One of the things he really liked was the President didn't put on politically correct airs. He said what he thought was right. Right or wrong, he spoke his mind, and apparently enough people agreed, or maybe just liked his style enough to vote for him. He was someone John could respect when few politicians were. And John would get to meet him.
Lately, after dinner, Delilah liked to lay back and have John pet her belly. There was no 'baby bump', but to her, it was like John was paying attention to their baby. When Joan found out Delilah was going to have a baby, she wanted to pet her belly too. Joan was cute, petting her belly and talking to the baby.
"Huwe up an grow, I wanna have another sister to play with," Joan told Delilah's stomach.
"Joan, it might be a boy," John said. "You might have a new brother."
"A brother's good too," Joan said.
From her chair, Sarah asked, "Another sister? Joan, Allison is not your sister."
"Is too, Gamma Sarah," Joan said, turning to Sarah with a frown. "Allie wanted a sister, so I said I'd be her sister, so Allie is my sister."
"There is a logic in that," Cameron said. "John and I decided on accepting Delilah, so Joan and Allison can be sisters if they want."
"I don't think that's quite the same," Sarah said, eyeing her.
"No, but the concept is," Cameron replied.
"The question I got," Mark said as he spoke up, "Is she going to have a nice set of canons?"
Sarah smacked him.
"What?" Mark cried defensively.
.
Getting ready for missing three days of school, John found out they could record the lectures they missed, and got a list of the required work they had to do. They also got a copy of UCLA's last game to take with them. For clothes they brought their practice sweats, every day clothes and a set of their best clothes for when the President showed up. Just before they left, Delilah talked over strategy against UCLA with Coach Benson during their last practice. Wednesday morning, they all boarded their flight.
Leaving from the Air Force base, the screeners were upset that Cameron, Delilah and John were 'exempt' from screening. Joan giggled her head off when she was patted down, but the woman would not 'do it again'. Sarah didn't take it as well. Derek just put up with it. Once she was through the line, Johan played at patting Mommy One down, then had Mommy One pat her down again.
Being her first time on a plane, Joan spent the flight with her face pasted to the window.
Sarah, not liking the idea of flying, took a center isle seat. There were only a few other people on the plane. Except for Joan pointing out everything she saw, it was a quiet trip.
Upon landing, they were guided to a helicopter by men in black suits that had white ear pieces in their ears. Their luggage was taken on another helicopter. Again, Joan planted her face against a window to see where they were going.
Landing at Camp David, they collected their luggage and were ushered to the main building by the black suited men. Some areas were off limits, but they had they rooms and 'lounge area' Mr. Kenny was the Secret Service man who was the head man at Camp David. A polite middle aged man, He showed them around and was even patient with Joan who asked questions in a stream. He even had the staff set up lunch for them on the veranda.
Unpacking, John set up the Laptop on the big screen TV there, so they could watch the UCLA game. Mr. Kenny was interested in the fact they played football. He wanted to watch also to see what they were looking for.
After their lunch, Sarah and Drek were happy to relax on the veranda. Cameron, Delilah, John, Mr. Kenny and a woman agent went in to watch the game. Joan was busy with another woman agent who 'found' a box of toys.
From the first play, they scrutinized the UCLA offence. Right after their first play, John noted, "Did you see their blocking? The guy on the right, he pushed up fast."
"The center stayed low," Delilah noted. "If you hit the one on th right, you'll get right though him."
"Let's watch a few more, see if he keeps doing that," John agreed.
"You play defense, John?" Mr. Kenny asked.
"Defensive center, It's my job to take out the quarterback. Delilah usually plays that position, but she's having a baby," John explained.
"I still keep up on what's happening, and help Coach Benson." Delilah told him.
"Cameron, you're the team quarterback, right?" Mr. Kenny asked.
"I am," Cameron agreed. "I do my best to use their defense against them."
"Use it against them?"
"Yes. If they have a tendency to charge hard, I let them and pass over their heads. If they are more cautious, I make them run and tire them out," she explained.
"John, stop it, back it up a bit," Delilah said quickly. As John did, she went over and pointed out what she was looking at on the screen. "See this? After the fake to the one receiver, he passed it to the other one who moved to block. The defenders didn't see it, they still have their eyes on him. That's a yard maker."
John let the video run. Sure enough the one with the ball ran though the center for an 11 yard gain. They backed it up and watched it again.
"OK, yeah," John said, "He slowed like he was going to block, the defender got by him and he took off. Smooth move."
They went though the game, picking apart every play. Cameron watched the defense closely. "They are light on the right side," she noted. "Watch, every play. Their safety tends to gravitate to the middle, and their tight end is slow."
"A fade back to the left will draw them in," Delilah said.
"Every play they are leaving a hole on the right. Carlos will be able to all but stand there, he'll be wide open."
"Fake a run left, then pass to him," Delilah agreed.
"Hey girls? Cal Tech had been heavy on their left sided plays, UCLA is probably reacting to them," John said.
"Let's watch a little more." Delilah said.
After a few more plays, Cameron said, "Yes, they are reacting, but over reacting. We can use that."
"Got a plan?" Delilah asked.
"Start off like Cal Tech, heavy on the left, then switch right and gain some yards. When they spread out, collapse the line and go right down the middle." Cameron said. "The play after that, run them ragged and go for the goal. I noticed they are not running very far."
"Send Juan out for the end zone?" Delilah asked.
"Not unless they get tired, their safeties are quick. Once we make them run a while. Maybe a couple fakes, sending Juan down for a diversion," Cameron told her.
.
After they scrutinized the game, Cameron, Delilah and John went out for some drills and exercises on the golf course. Again here, there were Secret Service patrolling the area. Seeing Cameron and Delilah in sweat tops and shorts, the Secret Service kept a close eye on them. Pictures were also required.