Chapter 31: Unwanted Company
Cameron was in the bathroom, assessing the small scars on her right cheek and above her nose. Aside from that minuscule damage, her skin had healed completely, her advanced regeneration capabilities allowed her previously exposed Terminator eye to grow living tissue over it given enough time, and she admired the brown eyes that her template had possessed. She lowered her head and turned on the sink, and began splashing water onto her face to rid her features of dirt and small debris. The Machine's advanced hearing picked up the sound of tiny pebbles of concrete from her fight with the female machine that John was going to reprogram.
She used the water to drain the dried out streaks of blood on her nose from the scars as well as her cheek, the task took a few moments and when it was complete she looked back up into the mirror. She had been so caught up in her task that she hadn't noticed John walk in. She turned to him, and couldn't resist the urge to embrace him.
John wrapped his arms around her back, holding her tighter than he ever had before.
"Are you okay?" he asked concernedly.
She relented from the embrace but held onto his arms when she looked in his eyes. "We've not been able to express ourselves for a long while now."
John allowed his hand to drift to her right cheek, caressing it with his thumb. "We'll be okay..." he said. "You enjoying your new look?"
Cameron stepped back and ran a hand through her hair that had been dyed Jet Black, and shortened to a Bob that didn't even reach her shoulders. "I am pleased that my skin regeneration has healed, but I'm not fond of the color of my hair or it's style."
John raised a brow, an amused grin placing a claim on his expression. "You don't like it?"
"I like it long. I don't like Black... I like Brown." Cameron said conflictingly.
John stepped forward and took her hand in his, he brought it up to his lips and gently kissed her knuckles. The expression on the Machine's face resembled complete bliss, a smile radiated pleasure into their moment.
"Cameron... it'll grow back. After we get the cops off our backs we can go back to the way we looked before." he said.
The Machine smiled. "I would like that."
Zeira Corp, James Ellison's Office...
It had been a tough day for James Ellison. Not only had he been given the task of working overtime to prepare material for his current and new Security staff, but Catherine Weaver had informed him that special projects were going on in the High Access wing in the basement below the main building and that he was not allowed there unless told otherwise. As a result, he had grown very tired and wanted nothing more than to sleep peacefully at his home in the woods. Luckily for him, his shift was approaching an end, and he could finally call Sarah to inform her of his recent exchange with his former FBI partner - Elliot Aldridge.
He concluded the last of his security report and left the papers on his desk to organize in the morning. His desk was a mess, but he knew Catherine nor anyone else would care; they never entered his office anyway. He turned off the lamp that he had used to perform his work, retrieved his suit coat, and strolled out of his office. He made his way out of the building by himself, as all the other workers had either gone home or were still performing their overtime duties elsewhere in the building. As soon as he stepped outside, his skin took in the serene feeling of cool wind.
While still appreciating the sensation, he retrieved his emergency cellphone from his back pocket and phoned Sarah. He heard the ring through the speaker as he walked towards his car in the parking lot. It took a moment, but he finally heard the faint "click" as Sarah picked up the phone.
"Hello?"
"Hey Sarah, Uh... June thirteenth, right? Sorry to call this late and I hope I didn't wake you, but we may have a problem." Ellison said as he fumbled for his keys.
"What problem?" Sarah asked, her voice tired and weary from the sleep she had just been pulled away from.
"You know that FBI agent? Aldridge? He's got some evidence against me. A picture of us leaving together when John and Miss Weaver left for... the future." Ellison replied. He was still completely dumbfounded by the words that had come out of his mouth, he feared he may never get used to this new foundation of reality. He finally found the key he was searching for on the ring and opened his car. He switched his phone into his other hand and sat down into the driver's seat.
He heard Sarah sit up from whatever piece of furniture she had previously been laying on.
"...Does he know where we are?" she replied.
Ellison started his car, feeling a strange sense of relief when it rumbled to life.
"I don't think so." he said, he pulled the seatbelt from it's resting place and fastened it above his waist. "But he's a step closer. I just thought you should know in case anyone in the house is getting too comfortable outside, you know?"
"I'll make sure everyone knows. You gonna get back here soon? Savannah's been asking where you are."
"Yeah, I'll be home in about half an hour. Bye Sarah." he clicked off the call and was about to put his foot on the pedal when he felt a small itchy sensation on his right shoulder. He reached his hand up to scratch it, and it went away briefly before it returned a moment later. He scratched it more and more, each time it refused to retreat. He finally gave it visual attention, and his left brow rose at what he found.
He noticed it was a small, almost tiny, circular object. He realized it had been placed there and was secured in place by a tiny metal pin of some sort, and he quickly realized it was the thing that was giving his shoulder trouble. As he examined it further, he noticed there was some sort of white-metal audio receiver inside the cover of the object. It only took another second of examination before he realized what it was. His eyes widened, and in a quick motion, he tossed the object out of his window.
He pulled his cellphone back out and tried to dial Sarah. The phone rang five times before a robotic female voice informed him that his call could not connect, he inspected his phone and noticed that he had no signal. He tried once more... same result; then another... same result. He figured somebody must have disabled his signal remotely.
"Shit." he said under his breath before slamming his foot on the gas pedal. His engine roared out of the parking lot, sending his vehicle quickly into the night.
Griffith Park, 12:15 a.m.
Jade shut the door to her car. She had parked fairly close to the tall monument in front of the building that stood atop the hill. Seeing no signs of struggle, she made her way over to the edge of the road and took in a good view of the Santa Monica Mountains. She saw for miles, her optic units registering the sight of buildings as far as she could see, it's majesty rivaled only by the sight of the blue ocean that formed its borders.
The machine pulled herself away from the edge and returned back to the parking spaces. The area had been blocked off by Police tape due to the shootout that had occurred. The first set of cameras were hidden among the leaves of a tree at the western edge of the main lot, about thirty feet from the parking spaces that were in the center. The angle of the footage that she was shown in the Kaliba facility earlier had suggested that the camera that filmed it was at the south-east corner.
She turned her head in the direction the footage showed and spotted a single camera mounted to the top of a thirty-foot pole as she expected. She moved on to the spot where the camera was recording - and sure enough, there were skid marks from tires that spun in place from an urgent escape. There was a second set of tires that followed the trail the first had left, both of them leading in the direction of the park exit.
With her target marked, at least for now, Jade walked back to her car with the intent of following the trail; she hoped it would lead her straight to the Connors.
12:21 a.m.
"Agent Aldridge, sir? We've lost the bug's signal. We think James might have found it." an FBI agent reported to Aldridge.
It was dark in the room, they had set up in a building not too far from Zeira Corporation, hoping to monitor subjects they felt were related to the Connors. Agent Auldridge rested his chin on his right hand's knuckles as he contemplated their next move.
"Did you have time to trace the phone call?" Aldridge asked.
The other agent shook his head. "No, sir. But we did manage to get this..." he pressed a button on the keyboard in front of them, and heard Sarah Connor's voice come through the speakers that were placed in the wall.
"I'll make sure everyone knows. You gonna get back here soon? Savannah's been asking where you are."
"That's Sarah Connor!" Aldridge declared.
The Agent sitting down at the radio desk nodded in agreement. "Yes, sir. Do you think we can send this to the guys upstairs and get a warrant?" he asked.
Aldridge thought for a moment, going over the possibilities. James Ellison was a respected Agent in his time and still was even today after he left the force. If his superior didn't recognize this evidence, then Aldridge was sure to take a bump in his reputation as an Agent. He came to realize that the risk was worth it; if James Ellison was working with convicted Psychopath Sarah Connor, then the results would be disastrous.
"Send it." Aldridge confirmed.
The next morning...
For the first time, when John Connor woke up - his body felt refreshed and willing to engage the new day. He pushed away from the quilt he was sleeping under and made his way into the bathroom. He stepped into the shower and turned the nozzle. The water washed over his body, renewing his senses and increasing the blood flow back to his brain. That was when he remembered his conversation with Derek the previous night.
The most unwelcoming of feelings presented itself upon him, making his mood disperse into muted sorrow. Had he said too much? No, that wasn't it. Derek knew, and he'd known for a long while. It was no secret his uncle was angry with him, but at least he knew that he WAS his Uncle. John figured it was better than keeping if from him any longer. What bothered John was that Derek knew Kyle was his father, and he wasn't happy about it. Not only because John had indirectly caused Kyle's death, but that he had kept it from him.
As John finished his shower, he made peace with the fact that Derek won't be on friendly terms with him for a long while, if ever. The Teenager sighed to himself as he flicked the nozzle on the shower off and stepped out. The boy searched for his toothbrush, cleaned his teeth, and walked into the hallway where Cameron was waiting for him.
"The Engineer called Catherine Weaver's phone today. He said that he may have made progress with reprogramming the machine." the Terminator said.
John finally treated himself to a smile as he heard the pleasant news. "Great! Did he say anything about meeting me today to teach me how?" John asked.
Cameron pointed downstairs. "Yes, Catherine has offered to drive you to Zeira." she answered.
John pecked his lover on the cheek. "Thanks, Cameron," he said before walking down the stairs.
The boy stepped into the living room and rounded the corner where he found Catherine waiting patiently for Savannah to finish her morning meal. The T-1001 seemed to sense his presence as she addressed him directly as soon as he entered the kitchen.
"Good morning, John. I will drive you to Zeira Corporation once Savannah has finished eating." she stated rather directly.
John didn't seem to have a problem with it. "Okay. Have you happened to see Derek around?" he asked.
Catherine faced him, still sitting down in her chair. "I believe he is still in his room - sleeping." she answered.
John nodded in thanks and took his leave of them. He made his way to the room next to the stairs where his mother was sleeping. As expected, he found her asleep. He smiled gladly, happy to know that she was getting sufficient rest. He marched slowly over, hoping not to wake her up. Wordlessly, he gently kissed her on the forehead. Sarah didn't seem to notice, only shifting mildly under the blankets. He watched as his mother settled before sharing a smile with himself, once again pleased that his mother wasn't going to put herself in any danger anytime soon.
With that, he took his leave of the room and found Catherine walking out of the kitchen with Savannah in tow.
"Ah, John. I've arranged for James Ellison to take Savannah to school today. We do have a small problem, however." the machine said.
John's eyes immediately adopted alertness he hadn't felt in a while. "Problem?"
Catherine waited to answer as she strolled over to where John was standing, only stopping a few feet in front of him. "Yes. Apparently, Mr. Ellison had a bug planted onto his person sometime yesterday. He believes it was planted by the FBI and has urged us to move locations immediately. We must do so quickly. Sarah and Derek will start packing while you are at Zeira Corporation. I want you to remain there until I inform you and Sarah of a new hideout."
Too many things at once, way too many...
"Whoa whoa whoa! Hold on!" John said with his hands in front of him. "Do you even know where to go?"
Catherine tilted her head at his question, obviously not a fan of his question. "Yes. Somewhere outside of Los Angeles, I am weighing my options at the moment."
John buried his face in his hands, pacing back in forth anxiously. "Okay, okay, okay..." he whispered to himself. "Fine, since it seems like you're sorting this out just fine on your own, I think it's best we go on our way." he said.
The T-1001 stared at him for a moment, a look that betrayed a small - contemptuous glare. "Yes, we should." she looked back at Savannah who was watching the television in the living room. "Let me say my goodbyes to Savannah,we will leave immediately after."
John, in his disguise, accompanied Catherine into the main building of Zeira Corporation. They did the usual routine with Alice at the desk and proceeded into the high-access wing inside the basement. With the number of employees around, John feared being discovered as they had entered through the main entrance as opposed to the back entrance where Catherine and the other employees parked. Luckily for him, his baseball cap and fake reading glasses had served him well. He realized that if anyone had actually gotten a good look at him, he would most likely have been discovered. He made a mental note to fix that later.
Catherine and John approached the door to where they had jumped into the future only a few days ago, and the boy looked around nervously as Catherine punched in the code. The door opened with a slight hiss, and the pair walked inside. John saw Ash in the corner and heard his chair squeak as the man jumped back in surprise. Upon closer inspection, John noticed the man's hand reached down to his right abdomen, seemingly reaching for something. He realized it was an instinctual response, he probably expected to find a gun.
Ashley's eyes opened wide when he saw John, but they fell calmly again as he registered John and Catherine's presence. "Shit. You scared me." the older man admitted as he settled back into his chair.
John smiled. "Sorry." he finally got a good look at Ash's eyes and saw that they were unrested, they were inflated and had numerous wrinkles under them. "Have you gotten any sleep?" John asked.
Ashley sighed. "Eh, no. I've been working on blondie here all damn night. Have a seat and I'll fill you in on what I've learned."
John did so - and after he scooted the chair to be closer to the table that the Terminator was laying on, he wondered if Catherine would stay to observe or assist. That question was put to rest as the T-1001 spoke/
"I have a business meeting on the top floor. If you need anything, please notify me using the notification pad on the counter over there." Catherine said, pointing at a notification pad on a metal counter that was located next to the computer equipment.
John nodded. "Thanks."
"You are welcome." The machine replied dryly as she exited the room, sealing the door behind her.
Ash looked at John. "Alright, let's get started!"
A heavy knocked cut through the silence in James Ellison's house. Sarah gripped her wound tightly as she made her way out of the bed when she arrived at the door, she peeked through the eyehole. The sight that greeted her sent a cold chill through her veins. She felt panic rise before she calmed herself down and began searching for Ellison. She found him sitting in the Kitchen reading newspapers.
"James!" she called out quietly.
The man turned around and eyed Sarah.
"It's Aldridge."
Ellison's lips parted in a brief rift of fear. He marched quickly to the door and saw exactly who Sarah saw. Elliot Aldridge was standing impatiently in front of the door, observing the house itself and it's surrounding foliage. Ellison saw the man grimace impatiently before knocking twice, this time harder than the last.
Ellison turned around and looked at Sarah. "Find someplace to hide Derek and John's machine. I have to open the door, my car's in the driveway. Go!" James ordered.
Sarah nodded in compliance before beginning the search for her housemates. She started upstairs and found Cameron fairly quickly on the second floor balcony.
"Tin Miss!" she hissed.
Cameron turned around urgently, her expressionless face settling on Sarah' alert one.
"We have to hide. FBI's here - where's Derek?" Sarah asked.
Cameron marched hastily over to the door that led back inside the house. "Shower." the machine answered as she brushed past Sarah.
John's mother marched quickly back down the stairs, hearing another knock, a much louder one; and she could tell Agent Aldridge was getting impatient. She opened the bathroom door and heard water running in the shower. Disregarding Derek's modesty, she brushed the curtain open.
Derek yelped quietly in surprise, his hands still deep in his hair full of shampoo. "Sarah! What the hell?"
"FBI's here. Ellison's stalling them, get dry and hide. We're meeting in the forest behind the backyard." Sarah barked, not bothering to hear any protest from the Resistance Fighter as she shut the shower curtain again.
Ellison watched Sarah and the others rush out the backdoor, and as soon as he heard their footsteps go silent, he opened the door to his house. Upon seeing Aldridge, he yawned heavily to give off the impression he had been sleeping in order to find an excuse as to why he had not answered the door earlier. He widened his eyes, pretending to be surprised to see his old colleague.
"Jesus Al, do you ever stop?" Ellison groaned.
Aldridge didn't retort with any snide words, he simply held up a document that seemed to be some sort of legal implication.
"Step aside, James. We have a warrant." Aldridge deadpanned.
"I already told you-" James started, only to be ignored as Aldridge bumped into him as he entered his house. The former FBI agent's mouth dropped in mild shock as he observed two other agents appear from the corner of his house. When they crudely shoved him aside as well, he finally noticed the FBI Van that was parked in the road. After cursing to himself silently, James shut the door and followed the FBI Agents inside.
Aldridge entered the room Sarah rested in, he took note of how the bed had was messy and the sheets were not made. He faced Ellison as he heard him enter the room after him.
"Unmade bed, James? That's unlike you." Aldridge commented.
Ellison sighed. "I'm gettin' sloppy."
Aldridge smirked humorlessly. He patrolled the rest of the room, opening closets and inspecting the contents inside. Ellison watched him as he performed his tasks, he turned his attention to the bed and noticed the small drop of blood on the pillow from Sarah's wound. James scowled and directed his gaze back at Aldridge. He noticed the agent was still inspecting the closet, and quietly turned the pillow around.
When Aldridge was through, he closed the closet door again. He took one more look around the room to see if there were any more doors. There weren't. He then crouched down and looked under the bed, seeing nothing. Sensing his investigation of the bedroom was complete, he walked back outside into the main room, Ellison following.
Aldridge ran into his partner - an athletically built Afro man standing just a few inches short of Aldridge and James.
"Anything?" Aldridge asked.
The Agent shook his head. "No, sir. O'Brien is upstairs now, I'm about to check the backyard."
Aldridge nodded. "Do it."
Derek, Sarah, and Cameron were hidden behind three separate trees. The doubled their silence as soon as they heard the backdoor open. Sarah observed as an FBI agent stepped out and inspected the patio. He did so for about thirty seconds before turning his attention to the Forest. The Agent crunched leaves and twigs beneath his boots as he approached, and Sarah motioned for Derek and Cameron to move positions around the tree they were hiding behind.
The trio complied and moved positions. The Agent unwittingly walked past them, he looked deep into the forest, trying to find any sign of them. After inspecting the area around him for a while and finding nothing, he marched back into the house with a disappointed huff.
Sarah and Derek sighed heavily, relieved that the agent had been oblivious to their presence.
Back inside the house, Aldridge approached Ellison, a disappointed expression about him.
"Satisfied?" Ellison mocked.
Aldridge said nothing and only stared at Ellison with an anxious look. He took one more gaze around the house, his eyes willing to latch on to anything he or his fellow agents may have missed. Seeing nothing, he groaned quietly.
"Take a walk with me, James."
"So, what's your story?" John asked.
Ashley Diaz finger's danced on the keyboard, his eyes glued to the screen. Whenever he came across a problem, he cursed quietly and stroked his heavy beard. It took him a moment before he realized John had asked him a question and registered his words.
"Hm? Oh. Well, I was pretty young when the bombs hit. I remember the reporter barely keeping it together when he made the announcement, the guy looked like he was about to shit himself, but that's all I remember. Of course, when the bombs did actually hit, I was lucky enough to get a heads up. My dad and I barricaded ourselves in the basement of our house. We didn't emerge for days. When the remnants of the National Guard picked us up half the country had been overrun by HK's. They kept us at a Fort in San Francisco Bay until 2015. That was when the place was overrun by T-70's. The Army put up a good fight, but in the end, it was too much."
John listened intently as Ash punched in a few commands into the computer before speaking again...
"There were a few survivors, myself and dad included. We were led by a Major Aarons. We traveled to L.A. to try and reestablish contact with some sort of military command. The trip was gruesome... I uh... lost my dad to malnutrition."
John nodded in understanding. "I'm sorry." he said.
Ash experienced an emotional setback momentarily before continuing.
"When we finally did make it to L.A. we didn't find any remnant of authority; Government, military, or otherwise. As we progressed deeper into the city, we started losing people. We had about thirty people in our group, and they were all picked off by metal, hostile survivors, radiation poisoning, you name it. Eventually, it was just me, Winters, and an ex-convict named Paul. We fought hard to survive, and we almost didn't make it. Until you came along. Word had spread among the survivors of the city about a kid named 'John Connor'. He escaped from a Skynet work camp and was fighting a guerilla war against the machines. When you found us, you protected us, fed us, and fought for us."
John reseated himself into a more comfortable position. "Christ... were there any infiltrators yet?"
Ash shook his head. "Nah. It was too early in the war for that, although Skynet did have ideas for it I imagine. Anyway, you took me under your wing and eventually added more and more survivors to our little group. People had hope now - hope that we might actually win this war. Of course, when the T-800 first came online that hope took a nasty beating. I dedicated my life to finding out what made the machines tick, me and a gal named Ellen worked together on reprogramming." Ash chuckled to himself. "Man... I'll never forget Joe." His expression fell sad, a tear fell past the barrier of skin that protected his eyes. "Rest in peace, rustbucket."
Ash cleared his throat before speaking again. "Anyway... when I was hitting twenty, you told me you had a special mission for me. Skynet discovered a way to travel back into the past, in order to twist events to its own benefit. You told me that my mission was to go back in time and ensure the creation of a time machine in the past. I think i told you this before, but aside from the T-800 you sent back with me that had a good chink of the materials put inside him, all the other materials were put in... a kind of capsule covered in tissue." his expression morphed in disgust. "...It was gross, but it had to be done."
"You told me that this was my chance at a normal life and that I shouldn't pass it up, and I didn't. I got a hold of the materials and made your machine. It took me two months to make a plan on how to sneak it inside the bank. After that, well... Vietnam was going on. I enlisted in the Navy, did my service, and went to College. I got a business degree and opened up an electronics store in 1970. I got married in 81', had a son in 85', and I haven't looked back since. At least until Cameron called."
John absorbed everything he had just heard, the man's story was incredible. He felt proud of his future self that he had found the will to give this man - a second chance. He was probably younger than five when the bombs hit. He never got to experience catch with his dad, his first day at school, only darkness, death, and fear. John never got to experience much of that either, and that's why he realized it was important for someone else too.
Ash pinched his nose, wiping troublesome dust particles off of his skin. "Anyway... ready to turn this thing on?" he asked, facing John.
An anxious smile crept up on John's face, and he nodded his approval. He watched as Ash punched in a few commands, and line after line of code racing across the screen. A few seconds of silence went by as the machine did not move. The Blonde Terminator's eyes were shut closed tightly as they had ever been.
Finally, after a minute of motionless silence - the machine's eyes fluttered open. At first, John instinctively jumped back in his seat while Ash stayed in place, observing the machine closely. He had probably seen this many times before.
Ash leaned in, he focused on the Machine's expressionless face as it slowly arched forward and sat on the table staring forward.
"Do you have a previous designation?" he asked.
"Affirmative. Previous Alias of the unit was 'Penny'." The machine deadpanned, still not looking at either John or Ashley.
Ash nodded. Once again, he sent commands into the monitor in front of him. After doing so, he turned his seat and faced John.
"So you see, she's in what I call 'Standard mode'. All she has is her core programming and her previous memories. She currently has no mission, especially one to kill you or anyone else. Check this out..."
Ash pointed at a particularly long line of code, just a string of letters and numbers that stretched across the screen like an endless train. John didn't know what any of it meant and was glad to know that Ash would teach him everything he needed to know.
"It took me a while to crack, as this machine's encryption of it's programming is more advanced than - say, a T-800, or triple-eight. You see this code here?" he pointed to numbers and letters on the screen.
"PROTOCOL/UNIT/INFILTRATION/DIRECTIVE - 00001**** NEGATIVE"
Ash looked at John. "You know what that means?"
John studied the code, pretending to find an answer to the Engineer's question. "Eh, no."
Ash chuckled. "Thought not. It means her infiltration protocols haven't been activated. But once I..."
"FIRMWARE UPDATED..."
"NEW PROTOCOL INITIATED...PROTOCOL/UNIT/INFILTRATION/DIRECTIVE - 00001**** AFFIRMATIVE"
"ALIAS - PENNY, SUBROUTINE APPROVED... INITIATING..."
"What's your name, hon?" Ash asked.
This time the machine turned to face Ashley and John when she spoke. Her tone was much more lively, much like she was an actual human girl. "My name is Penny. What's your name?"
Ash didn't bother answering as he returned to his keyboard. He punched in a few more commands and took note of how John seemed to catch on to the letters and numbers, as they all had fit together to form the Machine's code, order, and overall function.
Ash yawned sleepily. He outstretched his arms, reaching high into the air. "Alright blondie. That's enough for now." he input one more command into the computer and watched as the machine lowered herself back onto the table - closing her eyes again.
John smirked at Ash's exhausted demeanor. "You tired?" he quipped.
Ash turned his head, popping his neck and letting the stress leave his body. "I'll be damned if I ain't." he groaned as he popped his back as well before standing up and looking down at John.
"The Redhead gave me quarters on floor two. I'm gonna hit the hay. I'll give you a call when I'm rested enough to continue. Cool?" Ash said.
John stood up from his seat as well and stood in equal height with Ash. "Yeah, cool. I'm gonna see if Catherine's ready to head back. Get some rest."
The Engineer scoffed. "Better said than done." he replied before brushing past John to his quarters.
The day was warm, and the forest alongside the road was welcoming. James Ellison's company, however, was not.
"How much harder are you gonna make this for me, James?" Aldridge asked.
Ellison sighed, he had rubbed off on his partner way too much. The man was too persistent for his own good, and James' of course.
"Aldridge, I told you - I don't know what the hell you're talking about." Ellison said firmly.
Aldridge heard his reply, but aside from glancing at him in brief concern, he paid it no heed. He and Ellison walked in silence for about five more seconds, enjoying the brief atmosphere the forest offered the two.
"Beautiful spot you picked." Aldridge commented.
James looked around, soaking in the sight of the leaves embracing the trees, the birds chirping to each other, and the sound of small mammals scattering at their approach. He did feel at peace walking, he just wished he had been alone.
"I didn't pick it." he said, earning Aldridge's concern once more. "Lila did. She always wanted to settle down at some point, she figured to start while we were ahead. Getting that place nearly put my ass in debt, but I didn't care. I just wanted her to be happy."
For the first time in a while, Aldridge looked genuinely sympathetic towards his former partner's troubles. "Women..." Aldridge quipped.
And for the first time in a while for James Ellison, he didn't have a negative reaction to Aldridge's words. "Yeah... women." he joked back.
Like a psychic connection had been formed between them, they both stopped walking at the same time, facing each other. Aldridge looked intensely into Ellison's eyes, his expression burning with determination. "Look, James. I'm not gonna sugarcoat this. I will tear that place apart until I find John and Sarah Connor. Don't let me do that, James. Don't let me take away the last piece of Lila that you have left."
James was speechless, having no retort. He and Aldridge just stared at each other for a very long time; neither of them knowing how truly long it was. Finally, Aldridge broke their stare and walked away. His feet crunching the gravel beneath him while a speechless Ellison could only watch in helplessness.
When Aldridge and Ellison arrived back at the house. The pair noticed Agent O'Brien standing in front of the house, observing its structure. When the man heard their footsteps approach, he turned around and gave them his full attention.
"Sir?" he asked.
Aldridge glanced back at Ellison who stalled closely behind.
"Pack it up. We're outta here." he ordered.
O'Brien glanced back at the house, his eyes searching for any type of secret they may have missed. It seemed like his Paranoia got the better of him.
"Sir, if you don't mind - I'd like to stay for another half hour. Survey them from a distance, see if they come out of hiding." O'Brien said.
Aldridge wasn't a fan of his idea as he saw it as a waste of time. He figured if the Connors were here, they'd have probably taken off to another hideout as soon as they caught wind of his presence. He figured leaving an agent behind to watch in secret may have some benefit after all, it was worth a shot.
"Okay... but if you see the Connor's you radio in immediately. This chick is dangerous, you hear?" Aldridge whispered.
The agent nodded. "Yes, sir."
Aldridge said nothing more and directed the other agents back to the van. James Ellison watched as the three entered the vehicle; before Aldridge started, he gave Ellison a look that needed no words. Ellison returned this look, intending not to back down. Aldridge started the vehicle and drove away, leaving James Ellison's house behind.
The Van stopped a few miles up the road. Aldridge helped load some of O'Brien's equipment out of the van and stood in the middle of the van, holding the door open with one hand, and raising the other to point a finger at O'Brien.
"You get the evidence we need for a SWAT team. You have 24 hours." he insisted. The man didn't bother hearing a single word of protest from O'Brien before slamming the door shut and driving away; kicking up dirt as the wheels skid against the ground.
As soon as the vehicle was out of view, O'Brien dropped the camera Aldridge gave him - paying no heed as the expensive piece of equipment shattered into dozens of pieces as it hit the ground. O'Brien's body began to shimmer into a silvery liquid. Only a few seconds passed by as Jade shaped herself from the FBI Alias she adopted. As her eyes refocused on the road that led back to James Ellison's house, a sinister grin was born on her lips, and only grew wider as she took her first step.
Once again, sorry for the wait. The next entry will probably not be this story. I've been itching to update my Orville/Dead Space crossover for a while now. Stay tuned folks.
