Chapter Three
John Connor's Army
John normally would have enjoyed the time he spent with Cameron. He loved her, after all. Why wouldn't he enjoy spending time with her? Maybe it was because they were stockpiling their arsenal of automatics and clips. Maybe it was because his mother didn't approve that he was in love with the world's most efficient killing machine. Maybe it was because his heart always fluttered around her. Maybe it was because in five days Skynet was arriving with a legion of T-88s with a T-1001 already in the area which they would have to fight off fast enough to stop Skynet from uploading itself at the speed of electron and possibly quantum mechanics all the while staying alive and keeping Cameron safe from a killer virus that was supposed to be able to destroy her circuitry thereby robbing John of whom he cared most for. Maybe, just maybe, that's it.
Derek had yet to return from his search, hunting for Resistance fighters he was certain were in the area. Sarah was in her room, waiting patiently for Ellison to pick up. Joseph was sprawled across the living room floor, practicing loading an assault rifle. For having lost his humanity and become animalistic, he was good with a weapon. It gave John shivers to think about it, though. Joseph was a human turned into a killing machine, not much unlike Cameron and the other Terminators.
"John?" Cameron asked, finished inspecting another rifle. Her line of finished rifles and clips was much more than his.
"Yeah Cam?" John asked, half-distracted. This one clip in his hands was very stubborn, but so was John. He was only half-listening when he added, "What do you need?"
"Will we get married?" Cameron asked innocently. John's reaction was less than innocent. The clip apparently decided to become maliciously intelligent and leaped out of his hands of its own accord, touching the ceiling before coming back down on the table. Meanwhile the screwdriver in John's hand had continued to plunge forward. Propelled by the lack of resistance, it surged past John's palm and tore it open.
John was distracted by a strange lancing pain in his hand and gripped it, letting out a grunt of pain. Before he could get any further, Joseph was on his feet with weapon ready, and Cameron was gripping his wrist tightly while fetching the first aid kit. Joseph's eyes didn't relent their search, and his body retained a coiled posture, until Cameron had wrapped John's hand perfectly, even putting on Neosporin to dull the pain. After sniffing about, Joseph went back to what he was doing.
"Are you all right?" Cameron asked worriedly. She had no idea why John had suddenly thrown the clip up in the air and then attempted to stab his hand. Usually he was more coordinated and smarter than that. Was this cutting?
"I'm fine," John replied, massaging the bandage gingerly. "Just caught off-guard. "Why he had been caught off guard replayed back in his head. "Uh, Cam, what was it you asked me?"
Assured by John's words, Cameron returned to her original question. Just as innocently as before, she asked, "Will we get married?"
The strange, funny feeling returned to the pit of John's stomach, no longer distracted by AI gun clips and lancing pain. Where on earth did this come from? Get married?! I'm only sixteen! Who has she been listening to? So help me, Derek if you're doing this to freak me out… Clearing his voice, John answered with a question of his own. He tried to sound nonchalant, but it came out nervous and panicked, "Where did that idea come from?"
"I've been studying human behavior," Cameron explained, completely unbothered by the subject. Her hands were even checking rifles as she kept eye contact with him and talked. "Whenever a man and a woman fall in love, they get married so that they can be closer together. Will we get married?"
"Um, well, first, we're not exactly the right age," John tried to explain. However, Cameron had a counterpoint.
"The rate of teen marriages is higher than it was a hundred years ago," she noted. She's got me there. Cameron, this has to be the most difficult subject you've asked me about yet. What can I say that won't hurt her? Think, John, think; you do a lot of thinking anyway.
"Those aren't always for the right reasons," John added. He cut her off before she could continue. "Look Cam, another part of human society is that we don't try get married before a certain age. That's a part that anyone will agree with: Derek, my mom, people on the street, that's how it works."
"Why do you have to wait until a certain age?" Cameron asked. John had no answer. Heck, why do we wait so long? What's the real reason? I've never been told one. I've never looked into the subject, but I never was told one. Wait, now I know: population would skyrocket otherwise.
"That's just sort of how it is," John tried to tell her. "Not everything in society has a specific reason, but that just is."
"Oh, I see." Cameron was silent a second before she asked another barrage of questions. "What is the right age?"
"Ah, I don't exactly know. I guess somewhere in the twenties is right, although plenty of people get married after that."
"So will we get married when you are in your twenties?" Cameron asked. Once more John felt his tongue freeze. What was he supposed to say? No? He didn't even know why marriage seemed so scary to him. Because I'm sixteen and my mother will kill me.
"Cam, do we even need to be married?" John asked lowly, trying not to be overheard by Joseph. However, Joseph's super hearing still caught it. Trying to ignore the entire conversation, he began loading his rifle louder and louder.
"What do you mean? Human society says that is the next step for people to become closer," Cameron said. She obviously didn't get what he meant.
"I love you more than anything else, Cam. So what would be the point of getting married? I thought we were close enough as it was?" Did Cameron think something else was required from their relationship.
"I thought from my studies that after marriage, copulation was form of affection between two people," Cameron answered innocently. Yep, Cameron did think something was missing. How messed up is this? I'm the sixteen year old hormone-controlled boy, and my machine love is the one who brings up sex first. One of these things just doesn't belong here! Cameron, you are excellent at being awkward. You have no idea how hard it is to retain my virginity sometimes.
"Yeah," John answered, blushing, "but I think you're missing the point that there are some people who stay together who don't get married."
"I understand," Cameron said, "And they still participate in—"
"Please; don't say it." Cameron looked curiously at John, and he saw something in her eye that made him wish they were alone. What is going through your emotion simulator? I know what I'm feeling. Curse hormones.
"—but John, I want to be married." She had said it. She had said want. John knew deep down about two things. One, Cameron had reached the point where she could feel desire and want something of her own accord, albeit due to her autonomous emotion simulator. Two, if she wanted something, then John would give it to her.
"In that case," he said, "I suppose we will someday." He made sure to speak quietly, so his mother wouldn't come in, destroy Cameron, and castrate him. Cameron smiled warmly and kissed him, making John warm up. However, a sound caught Cameron's attention, and she pulled away well before John wanted her to.
"Derek has returned," Cameron said, staring at the wall. "He's with three men." She returned to her work when John nodded, but he noticed that she readied her gun, just in case he was threatened. She never stops. She never will.
Derek walked through the door, laughing about something. That definitely caught John's attention. Derek was laughing? He got to his feet to greet his uncle. How much did these others know about them, too? What had Derek told them?
"John Connor, I want you to meet three of your Resistance Fighters," Derek said, shaking John's hand. John understood the gesture; while they didn't know Derek was his uncle, they assumed them to be close. "This is Mark, Jack, and Fred." The three Resistance fighters were similar to Derek in build and strength. All three of them had assault rifles in their hands. But what John really noticed was that they were smiling, and that they were close.
"General Connor, it's nice to meet you again," Mark said, saluting.
"Thanks," John answered, offering his hand. Mark shook it. Something about him was familiar…but then, maybe it was just that they knew him from the future, too.
"Ah," Fred muttered, enthusiasm dropping. "She's here." The three noticed Cameron studiously at work. John knew exactly where her gun was, though. "I didn't know you sent her back." I guess Derek isn't that different in his distrust in machines. How many people in the future come to trust the Terminators I reprogram? Do any of them trust Cameron?
"It's a long story," John explained. He motioned with his head. "Come in; take a load off." The four Resistance fighters shuffled into the living room. John caught Derek's sleeve and held him back. "You know these guys?"
"Some of my good friends from then," Derek explained. "They were also some of your best human soldiers. I left the situation explaining to you, though." Noise caught their attention. Joseph was on his feet and embracing Mark brotherly like.
"Joseph! You're here, too?" Mark grunted, trying to breathe as Joseph accidentally greeted him too hard.
"Of course," Joseph answered, letting go. He shook hands with the others. "I like it here."
"They know him?" John asked.
"They were all in a squad before Joseph joined Project Vader," Derek explained. "It's kind of lucky, actually, that everyone knows each other here." Cameron and John gave him a hard look. "Okay, okay; it's not luck so much as stupid time-loop shit." He went to join the other Resistance fighters as they sat down. John sat back next to Cameron, working on the rifles. Behind them, they had engaged in talk of old missions and what they had done lately.
"You are jealous of them," Cameron noted. It surprised John that she had figured that out so quickly.
"Not really," John muttered. "I just wish I had people I could talk about old adventures with."
"You will."
"I mean now."
"You do," Cameron insisted, placing a hand on his. John smiled. She is getting so good at being human.
In her room, Sarah had finally reached Ellison. "Hello Ellison," Sarah said.
"Good day, Sarah," Ellison replied. "This isn't the best time; I'm on my way to work. What do you need?" He wouldn't be going to work after what she had to tell him.
"Skynet is coming," Sarah said simply. There was the sound of silence before several scurried noises.
"What?!"
"Skynet is coming back in time, along with two dozen Terminators," Sarah said calmly. Ellison swore in protest.
"How do you know? When?" he asked.
"We received a letter from John's older self. They will be here in five days."
"This isn't good. I assume it's an attempt to jumpstart Judgment Day?" Ellison asked. He had a lot of questions, Sarah noticed. That was probably why he was an investigator. He was a good one too: he had discovered the truth where no one else had."
"It is. We need help to take them down. Could we count on you?" Sarah asked him. There was a long pause. What would stop the man from this? Or did he have something else in mind? What could the agent come up with at the FBI?
"I'll be there today," Ellison promised. "I just have to make a stop to pick up a friend who could help immensely." A friend? That surprised Sarah. She didn't think anyone would believe him about machines. No one had believed her. Had Ellison succeeded where she hadn't? Did it have something to do with authority and power?
"Do they know about Skynet and Judgment Day?" Sarah asked warily. His answer in a way relieved a small sting of jealously she felt.
"No, but I'm sure he won't be hard to convince. He trusts me deeply."
"What's his name?" Sarah had to know who could be so easily convinced of what sounded like somebody smoking a reefer. How deeply did somebody trust another that they would so quickly believe the strangest tale ever?
"John Henry."
"We'll see both of you, then," Sarah finished.
"God be with you," Ellison replied, and hung up. Sarah tossed her phone on the bed. Who was John Henry? She left the though alone as laughter came from the living room. Derek's Resistance Fighters were joking about some adventure they'd had. Sarah only acknowledged them; they were distracted. She made her way to John to whisper in his ear.
"Ellison is coming with a friend," she said. John gave her a dubious look. Cameron had her full attention on their conversation.
"Who?" John asked.
"Gentlemen, this is Sarah Connor," Derek said, gesturing to her. Sarah turned around to meet the Resistance fighters, who had noticed her and had a look of respect. "Sarah, this is Mark, Jack, and Fred." Left unsaid was a smug, 'I told you they were real.' She ignored it; Derek was annoying at best.
"Wow," Mark said. "It's a real honor to meet the mother of General Connor. We never had a chance to meet before. He always spoke so highly of you."
"Yeah, well, now we've met," Sarah said, grabbing an assault rifle. "Arm yourselves and take your boots off; they're mudding the carpet. If you don't, you can clean the carpet with a toothbrush." Sarah went back to her room. All three looked down at their boots, half-wondering if Sarah was serious on her threat, half-arguing silently that they weren't that muddy. John shared a smile with Cameron; no one invaded his mother's medium. Derek discreetly took his off and hid them behind his chair. He would not be scrubbing the floor with a toothbrush.
*****
The doorbell rang. All four Resistance fighters stood up and faced the door. Joseph lazily rose to his feet; in the two hours since Sarah had called Ellison, he had managed to get a little rest. Derek and his friends had gone to picking their guns of choice, while Cameron had inventoried the amount of magnesium powder they had. Sarah had been resting.
John went for the door, Cameron at his heels. Personally, John wanted to meet Ellison again and whoever his friend was that believed everything. There weren't many people that could without visual evidence, and then most of those denied it still and went crazy. Cameron was calculating how fast she'd have to move if the door accidentally moved too quickly and was on a path to hit John. For some reason she couldn't contemplate, three of her processes were noticing how much physically superior her John was to the Resistance Fighters. It was irritating; she might need those processes. At the same time, they enjoyed seeing how much better her John was.
Sarah emerged from her room, giving her a son a warning look. He frowned and stopped short of the door. The others came up behind them, eager to meet Ellison and his friend. "Where'd you guys make friends with the FBI anyway?" Jack asked.
"Long story," Derek muttered. Sarah opened the door to see Ellison.
Agent Ellison was standing in front of the door properly, still dressed in his work clothes. "Good day," Ellison began, but nobody was listening to him at all. Standing behind him was Cromartie.
Sarah shoved Ellison roughly out of the way, and everybody—John, Cameron, Derek, Joseph, Mark, Sarah, Jack, Fred—had guns pointed at the stationary Terminator. For tense seconds the standoff continued. John stared down the Terminator that had been hunting them all this time. He was back? Why wasn't he attacking? There was no chance he had been programmed.
The standoff continued, and then Cromartie moved. Guns loaded as his hand came up. He stopped with his hand offered out in front of him. "Hello everyone," Cromartie greeted. "I'm John Henry."
There was a dead silence, and then Jack shouted, "What the fuck?!" Suddenly Ellison threw himself back up in front of Cromartie, hands held out protectively.
"Why did you bring Cromartie here?" Sarah hissed.
"It's not Cromartie!" Ellison shouted back.
"My name is John Henry," Cromartie corrected. "My friend Ellison brought me to help you."
"What?" Derek asked. "What is going on?" No one had lowered their guns yet.
"Cromartie is dead, gone. A cybernetics company used the body to store their AI, John Henry," Ellison explained. "He's a prototype explorer for heaven's sake!"
"Huh?" Fred questioned.
"I was designed to perform exploration missions in conditions that are in hospitable to humans," Cromartie answered. "Is this one of those situations?" The question in his voice was empty; he was honestly asking it.
Then the last person expected lowered their weapon. "I believe you," Joseph said, pushing through everyone. (With enhanced strength, it wasn't difficult).
"What are you talking about, Joseph?" Mark asked.
"Ellison didn't sound like he was lying," Joseph replied. "I'm certain Mother could agree with me." Heads turned to Cameron. She slowly nodded. Joseph stood in front of Cromartie, and motioned for Ellison to move. Ellison did so slowly. Without hesitation, Joseph shook the outstretched hand and introduced himself. Then he sniffed the machine's hand.
"It's definitely not Cromartie," Joseph said. "He doesn't have that T-888 smell anymore." Relieved, the three Resistance Fighters lowered their guns. Four remained raised. Cameron turned to John obediently. John knew that she would not lower her weapon first; she protected him at all costs. Exhaling deeply, John dropped his weapon. Cameron followed suit without question. Eventually Derek did as well. Sarah kept her weapon raised.
"AI becomes Skynet," she answered, keeping it pointed at the machine's head.
"A defense AI," Derek argued.
"Mom," John said. "It's not this one. Skynet is built with modern parts and in a network. He's neither."
"Still—" Sarah argued. She refused to see. To his mother, a machine was a machine.
"It's okay Mom. He's not responsible," John assured, touching her arm. Only he, Derek, and Sarah, knew exactly what he meant. Reluctantly, Sarah lowered her weapon. A collective sigh of relief filled the atmosphere. Only the machines and Joseph seemed indifferent.
"Welcome to our home," Sarah said through tight lips. "Come in; John has a presentation he'd like to give." She went inside, the Resistance Fighters giving her a wide berth. Joseph bounded back in the house. John moved after them, Cameron tightly at his heels. Cromartie, now correctly identified as John Henry, walked in as well. Ellison walked in with Derek.
"Do you know what you're getting into?" Derek asked.
"I'm about to find out," Ellison replied. "We're on the same side; you can relax."
"I never relax."
"Just put yourself in God's hands," Ellison promised. Derek wasn't sure he could do that. With what was coming, he'd put himself in the hands of his comrades. They entered the living room with everyone else and took a seat. John stood in front of everybody, getting ready to talk. Behind him, like his shadow, Cameron watched quietly.
Analyzing John Connor's task force………none of them will hurt John………threat level: minimal; John's anxiety level: high. She didn't get much further in her evaluation before John began.
***********
A/N: I have a request of readers out there. I'm having trouble coming up with a specific why Skynet would begin the war against humans. So please feel free to figuratively hit me with your suggestions in reviews. Drugs and/or any other mind-altering effects cannot be suggested.