Chapter 14
The last thing John remembered was being carried on a stretcher after he had been shot twice, shielding his daughter from harm. The first thought that went through his head was relief. He had protected his daughter, something a father always does for his little girl, his princess. The next through was also relief, for he was alive. He next felt like an idiot, he let a personal matter get in the way. If he had died, everyone else would have died and Skynet would have won. Deep down, he knew he had made the right choice and if faced with that choice again, he would make the same decision, with out any regret. The first thing he noticed is that he was lying on a cold surface. He opened his eyes, closing them again quickly when seeing a bright light. He tried turning himself to look away from it, but he felt a huge surge of pain from her chest. He tried turning the other way, but found it hurt a lot more.
He quickly accepted defeat and open his eyes again. It took a while before he could see anything, but his surroundings came in to focus eventually. He looked towards his chest and saw two large bandages covering his wounds, they were blood stained, blood slowly steeping through. He was lying on a bed, his body sitting up as he was leaning against some pillows. He was hooked to a heart monitor, which showed the slow beating of his heart. He didn't know if the slow beating was a good or bad thing. Looking around the room he was in, he at first thought he was alone. Looking to his left, he saw Liz sitting in the chair at his bedside. Her head was dropped forwards and she didn't seem to move.
John feared she was dead at first until she moved slightly in her sleep. On a small table next to her, was a pile of bandages that were blood stained. John guessed that they were his previous bandages and Liz had been changing them. He felt another movement to his right. Turning his head again, he saw Allison lying on the bed next to him. At seeing her asleep, he only then noticed she was holding his hand. He slowly moved his hand out of hers, trying hard not to move to much and wake her. He raised his now free hand and gradually began stocking her hair, the same way he would stroke Cameron's.
Allison stirred slightly and her eyes flickered open slightly. John could only guess she hadn't been asleep for very long. She slowly sat up, her hair passing out of John's fingers. She rubbed her eyes before looking right at John who just looked back. Her mouth half opened in complete shock and she closed her eyes, as if she couldn't believe what she was seeing. "Dad?". Allison sounded like she was looking at a ghost. "Hey Allison, you okay?". Her eyes widened even further in shock before her face gradually changed from shock to happiness. "DAD!". She threw herself forwards on top of him, wrapping her arms around him, causing John immense pain but he tried hard not to make a fuss about it. "I thought you wouldn't wake up again, I'm so glad your okay". She was now half crying and half laughing with joy. The commotion on the bed woke Liz, who looked with equal shock towards the bed. As Allison did, she moved to John, wrapping her arms around him also. "Your heart stopped three times, we thought you weren't going to make it". At this point, John was in real pain.
"I normally wouldn't complain having two woman having their arms around me, but I was shot remember". They both pulled away quickly, half laughing and stuttering apologies. "I'll be back in a minute, just don't move and take it easy". Liz kissed John on the cheek before heading for the door and leaving. John looked at Allison. He held his arm out, pulling her back to him. "Why did you do it dad?, he was going to kill me, not you". John laughed, he though she would understand by now. "You're my daughter, I'd die to protect you". Allison pressed herself in to John, refusing to let go but making sure she avoided his wounds. "Dad, I love you, but if you nearly die again, I'll kill you, I haven't been more scared in my life when your heart stopped, three times". John didn't even know where he was, let alone remember anything else. "Where are we?, and how long was I out?". Allison sat up and sat on her knees, facing John. "We're at home plate, two miles underground, save from the machines". John opened his mouth to speak but Allison cut across him.
"No one is ever safe, I know Dad, but what we've all been through, its safer then anywhere else". Home plate was the name of the base William Anderson build underground while John was in Century work camp. The base was carefully hidden so it was almost impossible to spot from the surface. At maximum, the base was large enough to house over twenty thousand people, though it would be crowded. "You've been here three days dad, your heart kept stopping, we though you had died at one point". She bit her lip and closed her eyes, trying to think about it. "Hey, it's okay, I'm okay, I'm not dead, I'm alive". Allison learnt forwards and hugged John again. "Don't scar me like that again, Dad!, or you'll have to worry about me killing you more then the machines". John held her tight, just glad she was okay more then he war. "Fair enough, it's a deal, if I die, you can kill me, I wont stop you". She laughed out loud and John could instantly tell that she hadn't laughed in days.
The door suddenly flew open and Liz walked in, followed by two other men John didn't know. Both stopped briefly, shocked at seeing John alive. They shook themselves and began to check John was truly okay. Allison stepped aside and stood by Liz, watching as they checked his wounds. John was forced to painfully turn himself so they could check his back, where the bullets entered him in the first place. They checked his vital signs and anything else they could think off. One eventually stepped back away from John, shaking his head in disbelief. "Nothing, theirs nothing wrong, no infection, no blood poisoning, no nothing, your fine, your going to be fine, once you've healed up of course".
The moment he finished, someone else came in to the room, looking right at John. His eyes widened in shock and excitement at seeing John. Before anyone could act, he turned and ran out of the room. As he ran, he repeatedly screamed at the top pf his voice, "HE'S ALIVE, JOHN CONNOR'S ALIVE!". Liz looked at John, seeing the confusing in his face. "You got us out of that place, you're a hero in everyone's eyes, we all thought you weren't going to make it". John rolled his eyes in a can't do anything about it now way. He tried getting up again but couldn't. "Sorry sir, but you won't be getting up for a few weeks, not until your fully healed".
The word that John Connor had survived spread like wildfire through the base. Once the word was heard, everyone cried out in celebration and relief. The man who had saved them all from certain death was alive, he wasn't going to leave them, he was still there for them. John Connor was still there to lead them in this war, and not one person complained at his survival. Over the next weeks, John gradually began to heal and was able to walk again, but was forced to take long rests afterwards due to the pain. John also finally met face to face Liz's brother William. To John and Liz's surprise, despite knowing for a fact it was John who saved him and his sister all those years ago, he actually recognised John's face. As Derek had told John years before, William was a keen weapons designer, coming up with many wild ideas for weapons to use against the machines. John also met an old US army member, named Perry. He brought John a lot of information on military tactics. Bedell instantly recommended to John that Perry be made a general, recognising his superior military skills. John agreed and he assumed second in command status over the base. Both Perry and William were at first doubtful of John's skill as a leader but both were proven wrong.
As Skynet was not prepared for a mass breakout, it had only a small army of machines in the LA area. Many thousands of people came out from their hiding places through out the area, pledging allegiance to John. John quickly set up a chain of underground bunkers, naming them after the old American states. When they ran out of states, they used names like Hammerhead and Eagle Rock. With in another week, John had contacted people in hiding all over north America, setting up more bunkers and communications to keep in contact with them. They all looked to John for leadership, John being to only figure of authority other then Skynet to be seen since Judgement day, thirteen years before. With in another week, John had set up permanent communication between himself and Australia, New Zealand, China, Japan and the British Isles, all of them for the first time finding someone who had the nerve to fight back, they all swore they would die fighting for John Connor. As John was busy building his army to fight the machines, Skynet was also building its army.
Skynet saw the battle at Century work camp as a lesson of human determination to escape and fight back. It had never before encountered such fierce resistance to its rule over the planet. Using its hundreds of factories on every continent, it began producing more powerful and advanced war machines. Skynet then deployed its new army and actively took the fight to the resistance. Though they had a harder time fighting the new machines, John forced Skynet in to a worldwide stalemate. Every time Skynet designed a newer and more powerful weapon, the resistance would steal it and make their own version. Every time Skynet developed a new tactic, the resistance would learn it and use it against the machines. What Skynet had in numbers and technology, the resistance made up for with human adaptation and guerrilla warfare.
As the war raged around him, John found himself feeling increasingly isolated. Bedell and Kyle were fighting under general Perry in another part of the city of LA, he knew they were alive, but he missed them both. Before Kyle left to fight, he told John he had found his brother Derek, causing John to remember when he shot and killed Derek to save himself and Cameron. John knew that Kyle believed more in the legend of Sarah and John Connor then anybody else and found it increasingly strange when talking about his mother to Kyle when he asked. John could tell he had developed feelings for her, despite her being long dead. He also knew that he would one day be sent back in time to meet her and die protecting her.
Just before Kyle left, John gave to him a picture of Sarah to Kyle. Kyle asked why he was giving it to him but John refused to say, knowing he couldn't. Liz had quickly become a vital asset to John, she quickly took an interest in Skynet technology. She led a team in studying the technology and using it to design weapons with her brother. They developed the early resistance version of the plasma rifle, quickly evened out the odds again against the machines. The only comfort John had was Allison, who was now a fifteen year old teenager, she as usual looked after John and made sure he was alright, especially once his nightmares began getting worse again.
Half a year since the break out from Century work camp and John once again woke from a nightmare. Allison came in to John's room, having been woken up. "Sorry, just another nightmare". She shrugged her shoulders and got in to bed next to John. "I've been listening for hours dad, you talk in your sleep". They didn't say anything more, neither couldn't get back to sleep. John didn't exactly want to go back to sleep and found it strange Allison was still awake. "What's wrong?, you normally fall to sleep easily". Allison seemed to be having a violent argument with herself in her head. John watched, half amused, half concerned as she sat up and looked at John with an expression close to sadness. She reached in to her pocket and took out the picture of John and Cameron with Allison when she was a baby. Allison sat back so she was learning against John, she pulled the blanket over herself and held the picture up so both she and John could see it. John could quickly see small tears falling down her face. "Allison, what's wrong?".
John was now getting concerned, as she ran her finger across Cameron's face. "I know what she is dad, I know what she is under her skin". John's heart missed a beat. how the hell did she know that, he had always been careful not to say anything about Cameron being a machine. John didn't say anything as he couldn't think of anything to say, prompting Allison to continue herself. "When you have nightmares dad, you talk in your sleep, a lot, I figured it out years ago". John felt a little relief at this, Allison had said she figured it out years ago and she still called Cameron her mother only weeks before. "How can she be one of them dad, you love her, you married her, she looks like us, how can you love one of them, you hate them". John again found it hard to answer. "Yes, I hate them, I hate them all, except her, I fell in love with her the first second I saw her, I didn't know she was a machine then but even after I found out, nothing changed, I still loved her". Allison noticed that John has twirling the brown string around his finger again, In which she gave a small grin. "She was once a machine, through to the core, but she changed, the more time she spend with humans, with me, the more she became one of us. She started to develop her own personality, her own emotions".
Allison turned to him. "What emotions?, which ones?". John could easily have listed every known emotion in the world but only gave the first few to come to his head. "Jealousy, hate, fear, anger, love, she even started breathing and she has a heart beat, she didn't know how or why she did, but she never complained once". Allison seemed fascinated by Cameron's emotions, her face lit up as John spoke. "Dad, You never told me what happened after Judgement day, what happened between you two, please tell me, I want to know, I need to know, I deserve to know if your going to be my father and she my mother". John raised his eyebrows in surprise. "I thought you wouldn't want to know her, knowing what she is". Allison shook her head. "You're my dad, your married to her which makes her my mom, which ever way you put it". She lay back, resting her head on John's pillow. She pulled John down next to her, still holding up the picture. "Tell me dad, what happened?". John had told no one what happened after Judgement day between him and Cameron, only a few knew he had married her, most didn't know she existed. John didn't want to lie anymore to Allison, and so he told her what she wanted to know, he told her the story of himself and Cameron.
. :.:.: . Many Years Ago . :.:.: .
It had been three years since Judgment day, three years since the bombs fell and so many people died. Not one day went by when John felt guilt for not stopping Judgement day. They were so close, so very close to stopping it all, all the death and fear, but he failed, failed everyone. It was the middle of the night, and John found himself standing alone in the forest. Through the trees above him, an HK aerial flew high, its spotlights scanning the forest below it. John moved himself behind the tree to hide as the light neared him, hitting the tree. John waited for the HK aerial to move away before moving quickly and quietly through the trees, having to stop again as another HK aerial came in to view and shone its spotlights to the forest floor. John heard to sound of movement through the darkness.
He gripped his gun tightly, ready to defend himself. His grip instantly lessened when Cameron came in to view, ducking out of the line of light from the machine above them. Ducking behind a large rock, she moved her chocolate coloured hair from her face. The moment she saw John, her face lit up with relief, as did John's. They had been forced to separate only minutes before but it seemed like hours as the HK aerials began searching for them. A large explosion was heard in the distance and the machines above them moved towards it, away from John and Cameron. Large holes appeared on the underbelly of the machines, and dozens of drones were deployed, flying with them and firing in to the distance. As the machines moved away, John and Cameron left their hiding places and embraced each other. "The sooner we get out this forest John, the better". John agreed with her, he had seen enough trees to last him a lifetime. They quickly let each other go as another HK aerial flew over them, firing rockets in to the distance.
"They found the outpost, Skynet will send more machines to search the forest on the ground, we need to go". John followed Cameron up a large hill, holding on to trees to pull themselves up it. Once they reached the top of the hill, they could see the entire valley before them. John and Cameron took each others hand an watched as the three HK aerials attacked and destroyed a camp. They could hear the screams as people fled in all directions from the camp. The aerials destroyed what buildings were standing and the drones gunned down what people they could. As always, Skynet's machines showed no mercy, had no distinction between man, woman or child. John and Cameron had seen many of these massacres, some from a distance, others they were part of, only just managing to escape.
The Amazon rainforest was large, an almost endless jungle, but everywhere they went, the machines were always close by. The drones and aerials left the camp and searched the forest for any other survivors. The flames from the camp lit up the night sky, making it glow a bright orange. If under different circumstances, both John and Cameron would have thought the sky beautiful. The camp used to be a drug plantation before Judgement day. After the bombs fell, the drug lord quickly changed his ways, taking in many people, providing food, water and shelter for them all. But now he, like so many others, were dead. "How many more times do we have to see this, to hear them scream for help, for someone to save them?". Cameron could answer John's question, for she was feeling the same as he was feeling.
John and Cameron had joined thousands of people from North America as they fled across the deserts of Mexico, just trying to escape the newly emerging machines. If John had a choice, he would have stayed and fought back with Cameron. But he was one man, and against an army of machines, he would have died. Cameron herself, was eager to fight back. Despite being the most advanced machine on the planet at this moment of time, she couldn't fight an army by herself. They couldn't allow themselves to be captured or killed. It was John's destiny to lead, but not yet. If Cameron were to be captured, Skynet would use her more advanced technology to make machines capable of wiping them all out.
Skynet could also use her skin as a template to make more, to cover its machines earlier then Skynet would actually developed the skins itself. Unable to fight back and unable to stay in or around LA, they fled south, away from Skynet, waiting until it was time to go back and fight. They entered the Amazon rainforest over a year before, joining with small groups of people, just trying to stay alive in small huts and small villages. John and Cameron never stayed in one place for too long, always moving on from village to village, valley to valley, country to country.
Eventually, the drones returned to their HK aerials which in turn, left the area, heading in the opposite direction from John and Cameron. With the machines out of site, they gazed at the lit up sky one lest time. It was as close to seeing a clear blue sky they had seen in years. John turned his gaze to Cameron. He found her to look even more beautiful with the orange glow from the fire hitting her face. It was as if she was glowing with the light. Cameron noticed he was staring and stared back, the light catching her eyes. "Your doing it again". A small smile formed on both their faces, despite what they had just witnessed. "You just so beautiful, it's like you getting more beautiful every day I see you". Cameron smiled widely as she always did when John told her she was beautiful, she could feel her heart beat increase in speed, as it always did as well. Moving her hands to John shoulders, she moved herself and kissed him, running her lips across his. Cameron next heard something she didn't want to. Her hands on his shoulders, she forced herself and John to the ground. Two rockets passed over them a second later, hitting a tree. Cameron hit her fist against the ground. "They really know how to kill the moment!".
Getting to their feet, they both turned and ran passed the burning remains of the tree and ran, deep in to the forest. The drone followed them, finding it hard to keep track of them through the trees. Neither John or Cameron had any weapons, having lost them over the years of running. All they could do was run and hope the other machines hadn't found them either. They lost sight of the drone for a split second, allowing them to hide behind separate trees. The drone stopped and scanned the area, trying to figure out where they were. The drone came close to the tree Cameron was hiding behind. John could see Cameron flex her fingers, ready to grab it if it came to her side of the tree. The drone then moved to another tree and eventually, it rose upwards out of the trees and away from them. John breathed deeply, thankful for their escape. He instantly froze on the spot when the drone returned, dropping from nowhere behind Cameron. The drones red eyes focused on her face, ready to fire rockets at her. She simply gave it a mocking smile before driving her fist through its eye. Sparks flew in every direction and the drone shook violently. Cameron removed her hand and the drone fell to the ground, exploding as it did.
The explosion send metal parts in every direction, including at John. He dived for cover, only to have a bit of metal slash across his cheek. Cameron appeared next to him seconds later, helping him to his feet. "John, let me see". John moved his hand away from his cheek. "You need stitches we need to find somewhere to hide". She turned to walk away, but John grabbed her arm, stopping her. He raised her arm and looked at her hand. It was burnt badly, but Cameron didn't feel pain, so it didn't bother her much. "I'll fine, you're more important then me, we need to find somewhere to hide". She again tried to move away but John again held her in place. "I'm not more important then you, never think that". Cameron tilted her head to the side as she always did when she didn't understand something. John let her go and she turned and headed deep in to the jungle, John behind her. They found a cave system at the foot of a mountain that was close by. Inside the cave, was an underground river, flowing down from the mountain.
Despite having his cheek cut open, he managed to grab some wood from outside and start a fire next to the small river, putting rocks around it to reflect the heat better. John refused to let Cameron tend to his face until he had bandaged her hand. John took care not to miss a single burn mark and was gentle with his skin. Cameron thought it nice he was trying to prevent her feeling pain from it, despite not being able to feel pain like he did. Once he finished, Cameron began to stitch his face, in turn being careful to cause the least pain possible. Once she finished, she looked over his wound. She frowned and began putting their medical supplies back in to their bags. "Its going to leave a scar". She seemed a little down then she normally was. "What's wrong?". "It's my fault your hurt, if I didn't….". John cut her off. "Hey, it wasn't your fault, believe me it wasn't your fault, it was the drone, not you". She smiled at him and she leant back against the cave wall. John moved himself next to her. "Why are you like that?, always nice to me the way you are". John put his arm around her, bringing her closer to him, and kissing her on the forehead. "Because I love you". They watched the fire burn for a while, before both falling asleep in each others arms, forgetting about the machines searching for them outside.
Over the next weeks, John and Cameron headed north, not seeing any other people, or any machines for that matter. Though they both kept their eyes and ears open for anything that would be a threat to them, but except from a few snakes, they saw and heard nothing. For the first time in years, John and Cameron were truly alone, they both enjoyed the quiet away from others. As they moved further and further north, they eventually came across a small village, hidden at the base of a mountain river. As they approached, everyone who saw them froze in fear at the sight of them. The children hid behind their parents, everyone backed off away from them. Most of the villagers were covered in facial tattoos and markings, they were part of a tribe, living simple lives. John and Cameron stopped and looked around. John could see these people were scared of them, he didn't want to intimidate them in any way. As they stopped, the men of the tribe held out spears in defence. More people came out of some of the tents, none of them having markings of any kind, some held pistols, aiming at John and Cameron. They held their hands in the air, showing they weren't armed. "I don't think they are going to welcome us John, we better go". John agreed and slowly backed away from the village, but as they did, every advanced quickly on them, only stopping when they did. John turned his head to Cameron. "I don't think they want us to leave either".
They heard a snapping sound behind them. Turning on the spot, they were surrounded by more then twenty other people. Leading the group was a woman, dark haired and had a strong Spanish accent. "Who are you?, why are you here?". John didn't answer straight away, looking at one face to the next. He only answered out of fear for the safety of the men point the guns at them. The woman pressed the gun to John's head, John quickly put his hand on to Cameron's chest as she moved towards her. "My names John, this is Cameron". The woman looked at Cameron for a split second, before her eyes darted back to John. "We're just passing by, we weren't planning on staying, we're hiding from the machines". Everyone quivered slightly at the mention of the machines. The woman ran her finger across John's new scar on his cheek, getting a hateful look from Cameron as she did. "How did you get this, it's fresh". John moved himself slightly back, the woman's hand leaving his face.
John caught Cameron's eye, he instantly noticed she didn't like the other woman touching him. "Weeks ago, machines nearly got us, I got this from them". The woman nodded her head and smiled. As she did, everyone around her lowered their weapons. John looked around at the tribe behind them, still had their spears ready for a fight. The woman called to them, speaking in a language that John nor Cameron understood. Once she finished, the men lowered their weapons and the tribe instantly continued with what they were doing before John and Cameron arrived. "What did you tell them?". The people behind the woman passed John and Cameron, joining the tribe. "I told them you were one of us, that you were hiding like we are, they won't kill you now, come on, I'll find you something to eat". The woman walked between John and Cameron, brushing herself across John as she went. John held out his hand to Cameron who took it and they followed the woman down in to the village. John could see Cameron had her eyes fixed on the woman in front of her. John squeezed her hand slightly, getting her attention. "Don't worry, I'm yours, no one else's". At this, Cameron smiled and gripped John's hand tighter, resting her head on his shoulder as they walked.
John and Cameron spend weeks living in the village, befriending almost everybody. They had intended to leave the day after arriving but ended up staying. The tribe weren't strangers to the modern world, having trade with the nearest city years ago, but after Judgement day, they adopted these new people in to their tribe, to be safe, including John and Cameron. The village itself, was isolated, almost perfectly hidden at the foot of the mountain. The river provided a continues supply of fresh water, and the men of the tribe hunted for food every day. The adopted tribe member, mostly people from the cities in South America, worked a small farm nearby to grow food and led scouting parties in to the jungle, watching for machines. Both John and Cameron joined the scouting parties, helped out on the farm, hunted for food and chopped wood. For the first time since before Judgement day, John and Cameron felt like they had a place to call home.
As the weeks went on, they noticed that the tribe celebrated everything that happened, the birth of a child, a birthday, anything that was worth celebrating, they celebrated it, however large or small. They celebrated with a party, playing their own music and dancing. During many of these parties, John and Cameron would dance together, John caught her eyes at one time, and he could truly see the true Cameron, the one he fell in love with, so full of emotion. During one such party, in which they celebrated as the leader of the tribe's wife had a new son, John and Cameron sat together by the river relaxing. John sat behind Cameron, rubbing her shoulders as she had her feet in the water, allowing the water to flow between her toes. "I think I've danced enough now, my feet are killing me". John smirked, as Cameron had always been the one to drag him up to dance with her, him not being a fan of dancing.
They could hear the party going on behind them, they both looked around as some of the girls screamed out loud and laughing as some men picked them up and swung them around. Cameron pushed herself in to John, taking his hands and resting them on her lap, her head resting on his chest. "I like it here, everyone just lives like people do, they just get on with it, not thinking about what's out there, what's after them, I wish we could stay for longer". "So do I, but we have to leave eventually". They both knew they had to head north again in the future, back through Mexico and on to LA, to start fighting back. John tried to put it out of his head, he was happy where he was for now, he had always wanted to be with Cameron the way he was now, just relaxing together as couples do. Through the clouds above them, they could see the moon shining down on them, It had been a long time since either of them had seen it, once again, in John's eyes, Cameron seemed to glow, enhancing her beauty ten fold. She held her diamond necklace up to catch the light from the moon, which it did spectacularly.
"Did I have anyone in the future?, anyone special?". Cameron thought about this, trying to figure out what he meant by special. "Special?, like me?". "Yes, like you, did I have anyone?". At John saying yes to her, Cameron felt her heart beat picking up speed again. "No, you didn't, you were alone all the time, you had no one, but when I came, you and I talked all the time, you seemed happier when I was around". John held Cameron a little tighter as she spoke, moving his head down to hers, till his mouth was an inch from her ear. John had thought a lot about asking Cameron what he was about to ask her, he had thought about it very day since he first told her he loved her. He had came close to asking before today, but it just never seemed to be the right time when he did. Taking a few long deep breaths, he whispered his question in to her ear . "Cameron, will you marry me?".
Cameron dropped her diamond, her breath taken away from her. John could feel her trembling from head to toe. She slowly turned herself to face him. John, at seeing her face, nearly forgot everything and kiss her where she was, but held back. "What did you say?". John knew she had heard him but didn't blame her for wanting to hear it again. He took her hand and held it before looking in to her eyes. "I love you, I always have loved you, ever since you asked me my name in that school, I've loved you, I don't want to be that John Connor with nobody, no one to love, I want to spend the rest of my life with you, no one else, just you, will you marry me?". As he spoke, tears fell from Cameron's eyes down her cheeks, these weren't tears of sadness, these were tears of joy. With her uncontrollable breathing and trembling body, Cameron couldn't say a word, no matter how many times she opened her mouth.
She had dreamt for this moment more times then she could remember, though she never thought John would actually ask her to marry him. Slowly, she nodded her head. "Is that a yes?". She nodded her head again before kissing him, pushing John down on to the ground. What John and Cameron hadn't realised was that half of the people in the village had been listening to them. The moment Cameron had said yes to John's question, they began to clap their hands and cheer. Cameron, in her entire existence, had never thought she could fall in love as deeply as she had done now.
Cameron and John had already made their decision to leave and go back north, across Mexico and back to Los Angeles. Once they told everyone their plan, the leader of the tribe asked them to stay and marry in the village before they left. He off handily muttered to John that he didn't have an excuse to get drunk next weekend as they had nothing to celebrate that weekend. Both John and Cameron agreed to this and both got increasingly nervous as the day of their wedding got closer. Neither of them had a say on any preparations as Cameron was dragged away so the women could make a dress for her. John was told that the tribe had done a seven weddings since Judgement day and they were a mixture of tribal tradition and modern wedding ceremonies.
As the day of the wedding dawned, Cameron was taken away the previous night to sleep away from John as it was bad luck to see the bride the night before the wedding. John woke the next morning, feeling more nervous then the time he first told Cameron he loved her. He dressed as smartly as he could with what clothes he had and waited by the river, where he and Cameron were to marry. He waited for a long time as he had woken before anyone else had. He tried to control his nerves, trued to calm down but nothing he did seemed to work. When people started showing up, John thought he would pass out from the nerves, but he never once considered running, not once. John was told to take off his shoes and step in to the river barefooted, while the tribe's spiritual leader stood near him, also in the water, waiting for Cameron to make her appearance.
John kept his head down, watching the water flow below him. He didn't even realise the last of the people had arrived and were all talking to each other. They suddenly all went quiet. John, taking a few deep breaths, looked up. Standing in front of him was Cameron. John's jaw dropped when he saw her. She was wearing a white silk dress, that ran down in to the water, where she was also bare footed. Her hair was entwined with flowers, all white, red and blue. He had never seen her as beautiful as she was now. "You look incredible". Cameron, who looked just as nervous as her did, gave a smile. One of the women of the tribe who could speak English stepped in to the river towards them.
"Right, you two ready?, I'm going to translate as much as I can for you". Neither John or Cameron answered her, both lost in each others eyes. The woman simply smiled at them both before taking John's hands and holding them up. She next took Cameron's and held them together with John's. The spiritual leader began speaking in his own language. The woman translated what she could, mentioning things like their soul's bonding together and other similar things. It went on for almost half an hour, until the leader took some ash from his pocket and let small amounts at a time drop from his hand over John's arms. The woman looked at Cameron. "Do you take John to be your husband?, until the day all things end, and life begins anew".
Cameron, almost crying with joy at this point, nodded her head. "Yes!". The man did the same again, taking ash from his pocket and letting small amounts of it to fall on to Cameron's arms. The woman turned to John. "Do you take Cameron to be your wife?, until the day all things end, and life begins anew". John not once took his eyes off Cameron, he couldn't look away from her eyes as he said, "Yes, I do". Cameron's smile widened as John gripped her hands tighter. The leader reached in to his pocket for the last time and took some ask, dropping it on to their joined hands. He then stepped back and held his hands in the air. The woman stepped forwards holding out her hand. In the palm of her hand, were two brown bits of string. "We don't have any real rings, but these are going to have to do, I hope you both don't mind". John took one of the rings and Cameron held her left hand out. John carefully put the string around her wedding finger. Cameron next did the same to John, taking the brown string and put it on his wedding finger.
Once that was done, the woman stepped back and said, "You are now husband and wife, you may kiss". They didn't need telling twice, wrapping their arms around each other, John and Cameron kissed, bringing cheers from everyone watching. Even when the cheers died down, John and Cameron were still kissing. It took loud cries from everyone to separate them so the village could get the party started. The village celebrated all day, eating, drinking and dancing, It didn't take long for night to fall. When night did come, few people were left awake, many including the tribes leader had passed out from the drinking. Neither John or Cameron had had anything to drink, they just couldn't believe that they were now married to each other. The woman who gave them their rings came over to them. "You two should go home, its your wedding night, have fun". She then fell flat on her face and passed out like everyone else. John and Cameron didn't move for five minutes until they could stop laughing. John carried Cameron in his arms to their little house, laying her down on to their bed. He stroked her hair, which was still full of flowers. Cameron placed her hands on his shoulders. "I've never had a better day then today, I love you, John Connor". "And I love you, Cameron Connor". Cameron pulled John towards her and they kissed, reminding them both of when they first kissed in the swimming pool all those years ago.
John and Cameron left the village two days later, and once again headed north. It took a long time for them to get used to the brown sting now on their fingers. Once they entered Mexico, it didn't take long to see the machines again. The further north they went, the more machine activity they encountered. It was clear Skynet was now changing tactics, instead of outright killing everyone and anything that moved, Skynet had begun to round up people and take them to the new work camps. Despite their joint desire to save the people in the wagons, they couldn't draw attention to themselves and so they pressed on. Without tree cover from the forests, they couldn't move anymore by day, and had to move at night, which was also difficult, only enabling them to move a couple of miles at a time. By the time LA came in to sight, it had just turned 2016.
The city was not how they remembered it, the city was no more then a heap of ruins, and the skies above the city was forever full of HK aerials and drones. John had noticed that they got closer to the city, the quieter and more saddened Cameron appeared to become. He didn't know why at first but then it stuck him. He remembered that he had to be imprisoned in Century work camp for six years, and Cameron couldn't be there with him. If she was discovered to not be human, Skynet would use her to make more advanced machines, effectively winning Skynet the war before its even begun. It didn't matter how many theories or ideas John came up with, Cameron was adamant that she be hidden away while John was in Century work camp. What Cameron was more worried about was John's safety in Century work camp, without her there with him, he would be vulnerable, even if history dictated that he escaped in six years and started the revolution. John didn't care in the slightest about his own safety, but he cared about Cameron's.
Cameron showed John where he was to be captured and told him she would have to hide nearby, until he came and got her when he breaks out of Century work camp. Cameron lead John in to the basement of their old home, the words written in blood by the dead resistance fighter were still visible on the wall, but now were covered in dust. They headed down in to the lowest room, a room they had never used when living in the house. Cameron sat down on the edge of a table, tears silently falling down her cheeks. John himself was close to tears, he tried to convince himself that he didn't have to leave her here alone. "Do we have to do this?, I can't leave you here for six years". Cameron tried hard to stop her tears but trying just upset her more. "You have to, I don't want you to go, but you have to, you know what will happen if you don't, My chip is ready, only you can wake me up again, I don't want anyone else to wake me, just you". Cameron was going to go in to permanent standby mode, with only John's voice able to wake her again.
"If you don't wake me, then you will be dead, and I don't want to wake up if that's the case, I can't live with out you". It took nearly an hour for both of them to accept that John had to leave. John lay Cameron down on a mattress, hidden behind all the boxes and tables in the room. "I promise, I'll come back for you, I swear I will". Cameron held her left hand out to John, showing her wedding finger and the brown string around it. "I meant it when I told you, I loved you, I love you". John, fighting back more tears, took her hand in to his own. "And I meant it, I love you". He learnt forwards and kissed her for the last time. As he pulled away, Cameron, not being able to bare the burden of seeing him leave her, closed her eyes and forced herself in to standby mode, her hands fell to her side, and she moved no more, even her chest stopped moving as she no longer drew breath. Stepping away from her, John hid her with the boxes in the basement. He didn't say a word and tried not to look at her as she disappeared behind the boxes.
He stepped out of the room and closed what was left of the door. He climbed the stairs and stepped back in to the remains of his old house. It was only then that John lost control, falling to the ground in tears, he had left her for five minutes and he missed her so much already. Dragging himself to his feet, he headed away from the house, not daring himself to look back. He had to wait alone for two days in a sewer pipe, until he could hear the sounds of a convoy heading his way. Stepping out from his hiding place, John held his hands in the air, the third monkey wagon in the convoy opening its doors. He was ordered to get inside, and only after a warning shot was fired at his feet, did he get inside.
. :.:.: . Back to the present . :.:.: .
John finished telling his story, relief surging through him that he had finally told someone about Cameron. He looked down to see that Allison had fallen asleep. He didn't know how much of the story she had heard but he didn't care. Checking his watch, he still had around an hour before he had to get up. Pulling the blanket over himself and Allison. Allison stirred in her sleep, laying her head on his chest. He tried closing his eyes, but his eyes fell on the picture in Allison's hand. Taking it from her grasp, he look at the picture. As John gazed at the picture, he shed a single tear and he made a decision. He didn't care how deep in to Skynet territory Cameron was hidden, didn't care how dangerous it was, he was going to get her back. Tomorrow, he was getting his wife back, he wasn't going to spend another single day without her.