Chapter 12

Reborn

Vanna hugged and kissed Allison. They were both thrilled to see each other again.

They caught up on things briefly. Allison needed to carry out a mission.

"I need to find someone named 'Cameron'." Allison said. "I need to do that immediately for several reasons. One of which is very uncomfortable."

Vanna headed for the lab. They observed Sarah exit from there carrying a large weapon.

Allison took Sarah in from a distance. She'd briefly dealt with her earlier.

"She seems really intense." Allison said.

Vanna nodded.

"She is." Vanna said. "It's complicated."

They entered the lab and the door closed behind them. The room looked empty.

"So where is Cameron?" Allison asked.

Cameron stood up. She turned around and looked at Allison. She stared at her for a few seconds. It looked as if she might become angry. She did not.

Cameron extended her hand and smiled.

"Hello, Allison, I'm Cameron."

Allison stopped in her tracks. She just stood there as she looked at Cameron. She stared at a much more beautiful version of - herself. She was told they would look the same but this was unbelievable. She did not think a machine could look 'exactly' like her. This version of her - Cameron, was HOT. Allison wondered how this was even possible. John told her the how and why but seeing it first hand was still a shock. It was a 'future shock' to say the least. There was a Metal version of her and she was a total knockout.

Allison needed to collect herself.

"I am pleased to meet you." Allison said as she took Cameron's hand. "You are VERY beautiful, Cameron. I have heard so much about you from John."

Cameron was aware John was alive and in good condition from John Henry. Maybe Allison could fill in a few more details. It did not take much imagination on her part to see that John would have been attracted to Allison in the future. She was pretty sure that something could have happened. Even in the 'raw' right out of the future, Allison was beautiful.

"You heard about me from John? Is he coming back now?" Cameron asked. "How is he? Is he uninjured? In need to see him. I need to bring him back. Is he safe?"

Allison noted the extreme concern that Cameron showed. She saw the same feelings expressed by John whenever he spoke of Cameron to her in the future. It was evident there was something much deeper on both of their parts. She could understand some of the events related to John and her better now. Seeing really was believing and that explained a lot.

"He was a few minutes ago." Allison said. "We took some fire but were about regain control of the situation. John Henry protected me with his body. I need to thank him again. I would have been shot, maybe even killed. I owe him one."

Vanna looked at Allison and then to Cameron. Allison provided her some information on the way to the lab. It was very extreme, even for Allison.

"Cameron, I need you to cut all the monitoring in this room." Vanna said.

Cameron cut the feeds and secured the room. This must be something important.

"It's done." Cameron said. "We're alone."

Vanna still looked around before she spoke.

Cameron noted the caution. It only seemed to deepen the mystery.

"Allison has important information for you from John." Vanna said. "Nobody is to know the nature of Allison's true mission until it is completed. That should be very soon."

Vanna could see Allison and Cameron scrutinize and check each other out. They sized each other up. Something seemed a little deeper here on both of their parts.

Allison found it hard to take her eyes off of Cameron. She knew men and women both always stared at her but Cameron was three times better looking than her, at least. Maybe it was ten times better. Her 'skin' was for sure. It was flawless and perfect.

"I just have to say before we get started that I have never ever in my life looked as good as you do, Cameron." Allison said. "You are very beautiful."

Cameron could see the beauty in Allison even if it was unrefined. Maybe that made her more beautiful to look that pretty in the raw.

"Thank you. I like to look Tight for John." Cameron said.

Cameron knew John liked it when she looked Tight.

Allison looked down at her waist area and then at Vanna.

"Tight? Speaking of - tight, I have something for you from John. He only wanted me to know about it when he sent me here." Allison said. "He was afraid I may be searched and what he wanted to send back would be taken away or even destroyed. He was afraid some in our 'group' might not want you back in the picture. Once he showed me what it was, I told him I could hide it where no one would search me and live."

That caught Cameron's interest. It must be a secret message from John. She looked at Allison and wondered where it was.

"What is it?" Cameron asked. "Where is it?"

Allison looked at the tether connected to Cameron and then she looked Cameron in her eyes.

"John said it was YOU, your chip." Allison said. "He said it was HIS Cameron. He wanted me to give you life. He wanted to give you your life back again."

Cameron quickly replayed the file. She wanted to make sure she heard Allison clearly. If it was her chip she could go and get John right now. She waited for Allison to produce it. She did not see it.

"Where is it?" Cameron asked again.

Allison whispered in Vanna's ear.

Cameron listened too. She was surprise and somewhat amused at the symbolical nature of what was about to happen.

Vanna looked at Allison, then at Cameron and then back to Allison.

"Get up on the work platform, Allison." Vanna said.

She indicated where she wanted Allison to go.

"Well as strange as this seems, Cameron, you are about to be 'born' or maybe 'reborn'. I transported it in the most shielded part of my body, which I could easily and quickly access and no one else would see or look." Allison said. "It's an old smugglers trick for contraband."

Vanna and Cameron looked at each other and both smiled. Then all three of them started to laugh.

Cameron viewed females apprehended on the TV show 'Cops' hiding drugs there before. They usually came clean before the authorities searched there themselves, not all of them did.

"That is why the police invented the 'body cavity' search." Cameron said.

Allison only wore a robe. She untied it and opened it up. She let Cameron see her.

"I guess you get to see 'yourself' from a perspective no one else gets to see." Allison said. "Then again, I guess 'that' is identical too."

"One 'secret spot' coming up." Vanna joked.

Allison was not shy about letting Cameron see her - all of her.

Cameron was able to see everything on Allison. She noted the multiple cuts, small scars, sores and bruises on Allison's legs. Her whole body was like that from what she could see. This girl was in worse shape than 'Her Allison' was. Cameron was worried John may now be in this condition or worse. Vanna previous told her that she looked like that too when she returned from her past - the future. The toxins and damage of the future were very evident on Allison's body.

Allison indicated for Vanna to proceed.

Vanna didn't have a problem with that. She had plenty of experience down there on Allison for years. She was please to see everything looked the same. She was also glad nothing was missing. It looked like Allison was able to avoid capture by Scavengers. They were known to take 'souvenirs' and 'mark' their victims. Those were the lucky ones who lived.

Vanna removed the anti-static bag from inside Allison.

Cameron zoomed in on Allison as Vanna removed her chip from her.

"You're correct. We are identical even down to the pigmentation variations." Cameron said.

Vanna thought to herself that she could've told Allison and Cameron that. She'd checked on that too when she 'inspected' Cameron.

"TMI." Allison said. "I'm glad that's gone."

Allison was going to joke that maybe Cameron could show her - her secret spot. She would like to verify what Cameron said. Maybe that was best left for another time.

Vanna opened the protective anti-static bag and Cameron reached out and picked up her chip. She now held 'herself' in the palm of her hand. For a brief moment Cameron considered crushing it. She wasn't sure why. She figured it was for the same reason Cameron Two tried to self terminate. That incident still troubled her.

"I will hook this up to the server. We can go through it before we put it back in you, Cameron. I want to make sure everything is OK and there are no surprises. Anything you want to add or delete can be done then. Is that fine with you, Cameron?" Vanna asked.

There was only a blank look on Cameron's face.

"Cameron? Cameron?" Vanna asked again.

Vanna became worried at this point.

Cameron still wondered about her previous thoughts. She collected herself.

"Yes. Let me try to communicate with Cameron Two. She attempted to self terminate earlier." Cameron said. "Show Allison where to clean up and she can use any of my clothes she wants, except my purple coat. Fix her up and help her look nice. She's very pretty."

Cameron almost said Tight but she could see Allison was going to need a lot of 'work' to get there. It would definitely be a lot of work and a lot of healing.

Vanna noted Cameron looked at all the imperfections on Allison.

"I told you I was like that also, Cameron. Most will heal and go away in this environment." Vanna said. "It just takes a little time. We have medicine here to help for most of what's wrong."

Cameron sat at her terminal and contacted Jim. Both John Henry and Jim prevented Cameron Two from self terminating. Jim filled in all the information that John Henry acquired. Cameron then contacted Cameron Two and told her of the recent developments. Cameron Two asked what they were going to do about the 'Bitch Whore' in the future. Cameron said they would deal with it soon enough. She did remind Cameron Two that the 'Bitch Whore' was also them, a copy of them. Cameron Two requested to be integrated with Cameron Prime as one program. Cameron said she would do that. Everything would be updated and transferred to her chip.

Vanna and Cameron checked Cameron's chip and found nothing wrong with it. 'John Henry' was already completely removed from it. They then proceeded to integrate everything from Cameron's server and her chip into one file. This act made Cameron complete.

"I want 'our' file transferred to my chip and then this computer copy of me deleted." Cameron said. "Stuck in a box is no way to exist."

Cameron looked at the server with disgust. Freedom was near.

Vanna completed the transfer. She removed the cable from Cameron's neck and caressed her chip. Cameron's chassis was off line now.

"I love you, Cameron." Vanna said softly as she kissed the chip in her hands.

Allison watched with some apprehension as Vanna cut the scalp open to get to the port.

Vanna then carefully inserted the chip into the port.

After the reboot Cameron opened her eyes. She looked at Vanna.

"Get Sarah here in here, please. I only want Allison, Sarah and you here before I go." Cameron said.

Vanna only put Cameron's chip in a few seconds ago.

"Go? Go where?" Vanna asked.

Cameron stood tall and looked confident.

"Back to the future." Cameron said. "I'm going to bring John back. I am going to bring John home. I'm going to do it right now."

Reborn

First there is nothing
Then we are born
Should it be celebrated
Or should we mourn

Between many things
We may become torn
They can crush our spirit
Leaving us feeling forlorn

Many things can happen
In advance I will warn
Time has its effect
As things become worn

We may love many
To one love is sworn
When others interlope
That love can be shorn

To some we give hope
To others we are a thorn
If one looks deeper
Can we be one they adorn

The future is fluid
That I can forewarn
Is it better to be dead
Or better to be reborn

Nobody