Okay so on to chapter four, sorry I've been away for a while... I've been really busy with my other story and with work and stuff. Hopefully I'll be able to get through the last of the exposition and finally begin with the actual story. Sorry it's been kind of a slow start, but what can you do? Anyway let's begin.
Another, Insane Choice.
Mother Dearest.
Derek and Sarah shared a look as Alex followed Fred out of the room, 'A problem... Great, that's exactly what we needed.' They both thought as they exited back into the bar.
"So, my mother's here." Alex stated to the Colonel as they exited.
"Yeah... I was informed about six seconds after you walked into the armory." The old Colonel at the bar retorted, as they walked past.
All the while Cameron stuck close to John, scanning each individual in the room, there were at least four cyborgs plus 'Fred' in the room with them. Cameron's sensors were firing off, warning her that if this turned into a fight, the Connor's chance of survival was less then three percent. As they walked around the bar, and into the open room, Cameron wondered to herself why that percentage made her feel so odd, it was almost as if she felt... 'uneasy'.
Fred led the group into a side room, where a young woman sat, she must have been only in her late twenties or early thirties, thought they all recognized her immediately, as Samantha Cameron. She was sitting on a couch resting her feet, unlike all the other resistance fighters, that they had met, she looked different, she didn't look tired or warn out, if fact she looked like she had just come back from a relaxing vacation.
Sarah, Derek, John, and Cameron all analyzed the woman, she looked incredibly young considering she had a thirty year old son. She looked a lot like Cameron, but with less defined features and smaller eyes. Her brunette hair was cut short and was ruffled, in a bob cut, it barely hung past her mouth. She also had deep green eyes that matched her son's.
Cameron tilted her head curiously, something interesting was occurring, she couldn't analyze this woman. It was not as if, her scans came back without information, she couldn't run the scans at all. Cameron quickly began to run a few tests, on her hardware to make sure it wasn't malfunctioning, the quick scan she did came back clear, and yet she knew something had to be wrong.
Whenever Cameron focused on Samantha and began to scan her body, her analysis software would simply stop running. She tried four times and received the same result, she would get as far as identifying Samantha's body's physical features, but the moment her analysis went deeper, the scan would simply stop.
After the fourth failure Cameron ran an inquiry of her CPU to deduce what should be done next, this had never occurred before and she was having a hard time determining whether or not she should be suspicious or intrigued.
She settled on a verbal inquiry to try and deduce what could be happening.
"Why can't my systems run a scan of your body?" Cameron asked curiously.
The Connor's all glanced back at Cameron who stood at the back of the pack. "What do you mean Cameron?" John asked, with a confused look.
"I've run four separate scans of her body, and they have all ceased before a deep tissue scan can commence." Cameron clarified.
John glanced at Alex, who made a face and glanced at his mother, who looked up at all of them and smiled. "Well, I guess that means that it's a success." Samantha stated.
"What?" Alex asked as his mother rose to her feet.
"Something I was testing for the cyborgs, it's a sub-dermal, nano-tech device that can detect when a machine is scanning the body, it then emits a signal that cause's a single registry error within the cyborgs systems that causes the scan to crash and end without warning. Think of it like camouflage for the cyborgs to use while infiltrating SkyNet bases." Samantha explained as she tapped her chest plate.
"Oh... thank you for explaining." Cameron stated after a moment.
"So... General Connor finally sends me out on my own, and two weeks later, my mother is sent to check up on me." Alex stated with a bemused look.
"Oh, you wish you were that important Alexander." Samantha replied in a condescending tone.
"Damn mama that hurt." Alex wined playfully in response.
"I wish I could say that General Connor, sent me all this way to check up on his favorite pain in the ass, but sadly that's not the case." Samantha stated with a bemused look on her face.
"Well... in case you didn't notice I'm kinda busy, so if you could fill me in..." Alex stated after a moment, motioning to the Connor's.
"Derek... long time no see." Samantha stated with a happy smile.
"It's been to long, mam." Derek replied in a formal military fashion.
"Cameron... it's good to see you're still causing trouble for the Connor's." Samantha commented focusing her attention on the machine.
"Samantha Cameron, you were one of John's top advisers. If he sent you back then the situation must be dire." Cameron stated in a neutral tone.
Samantha simply made a face, and stared at Cameron for a few moments.
Cameron stared back, and the two locked eye for a moment before, Cameron finally broke the silence and stated, "I'm willing to continue the argument of who was named after who, if you wish."
Samantha let out a single laugh and shook her head with a smile, "That's an argument that will never end."
John glanced between the two curiously, before settling on Cameron, "What?" She asked when she noticed his eye on her.
"I thought Alex said that she was named after you." John stated, tilting his head in confusion.
"That is true... but John only gave me the name Cameron Philips before I jumped though the time displacement field... so in all actuality I was named after her." Cameron replied.
"It's a paradox... kinda. I was named after her, but she was named after me so that she could be sent back in time, so that one day I could be named after her... and... yeah." Samantha clarified.
"Cyborgs don't really understand the concept of a paradox..." Alex stated with a shake of his head.
"Yeah... I guess they wouldn't." John replied as he glanced back at Samantha who was now staring at him, smiling warmly.
"My god... to think you were ever that young." Samantha commented.
"What do you mean?" Sarah asked as she glanced between the two.
"The John Connor I know is a grizzled old bastard with tons of scars and insane combat skills. It's just hard to imagine that the handsome young teenager standing before me, will turn out to be such a ruthless warrior." Samantha commented with a far away look in her eyes.
"You have a thing for younger men?" Derek asked her, as he nudged John, who had a stale look on his face.
"Shut up." John replied with a huff.
"Aw... even now, I can still make you blush." Samantha chided, with a shake of her head, as she focused on Fred.
"Ignore my mother... when it comes to technology and machines, she's a savant, but when it comes to being socially acceptable... she's about four quarters short of a buck, if you know what I mean." Alex whispered to John, with a distasteful look.
"Thank you for bringing them here, Fred." Samantha thanked the liquid metal machine.
"You are most welcome Colonel. If that will be all, there is much I have to do." Fred stated as he departed.
"So what seems to be the problem, mother? Why did Connor send you back?" Alex asked as he took a seat next to his mother.
"SkyNet has been gathering, building, and producing large amounts of overcharged highly experimental plasma cells. We think that It's planning on powering something massive." Samantha explained, suddenly becoming very serious.
"What do you think it could be?" Alex asked, staring at his mother intently.
"We don't know, but with the number of machines SkyNet is sending back to this era, John assumes that whatever it is, is being built here, in this time." Samantha explained.
"Why are you telling me this? I've got my orders... Why not tell one of the other SkyNet hunting parties?" Alex asked with a tilt of his head.
"Even in his youth, John Connor always had a way of getting mixed up with SkyNet. I'm telling you this because, you need to know that something is amiss, and that you should watch your back. With the number of plasma cells, SkyNet is stockpiling, it could easily power the entirety of the United States for about ten years. So be careful. John sent me back to investigate and search for any signs of what SkyNet could be up to." Samantha, finished explaining. She had a look of worry about her.
"Fine... thanks for the warning, I'll make sure the Connor's stay out of trouble." Alex stated after a moment.
A second went by before Alex stood, and turned towards the door, he stopped before he had taken a step and glanced back at him mother, who simply stared at him with a small smile. Alex stared back at her for a moment before letting out a sigh, and leaning down to hug her. Samantha wrapped an arm around him and held him close, she glanced up at Sarah and smiled at her.
John watched as his mother smiled back, as he stood there, he felt as if something had just passed between the two mother's, almost like a certain understanding. John thought about asking his mother about it, but then it struck him that, it was probably a 'mom' thing, so he remained silent.
Samantha held her son for another moment before whispering something into his ear, and kissing his cheek.
"I know." Alex replied as he pulled away from the hug, a far away look in his eyes.
Alex turned and looked at the Connor's, he had this look about him, he almost looked sad. After a moment he brushed off the feeling and focused on Sarah, knowing instinctualy who was in charge of this little group.
"I don't know how long it will be, until John's future wife come's into the picture, but until that time, I'm yours. I'll help however I can." Alex stated.
Sarah stared at him for a moment, remembering what Derek said about him. About how he was loyal to only one person... Derek was right, when he said that whether or not they could trust Alex would be determined by whether or now they could trust John. After a moment she nodded, and decided on a course of action. "Let's get those weapons packed and head home. We have a lot to do." Sarah ordered.
Alex, Sarah, and Derek all departed from the room, John and Cameron lagged behind, John was staring at Samantha, unable to shake the feeling that he knew her from somewhere.
"What?" She asked, smiling at him.
"Sorry... it's just... I feel like I've met you before." John replied, shaking his head.
"I don't remember anything about what happened before the bombs fell, I assume that I lived in this area, because this is where I was found. I guess it's possible we've met before... you would know better them I." Samantha stated, as she got to her feet and began walking towards the door.
"Yeah... maybe." John stated, scratching his head as he turned to leave.
"Until next time, Cameron Philips." Samantha stated happily as she walked past her.
"Until next time, Samantha Cameron." Cameron replied.
John stopped as he exited, the way the two of them spoke just then... 'No.' John thought as he shook his head and continued after his mother and uncle.
Cameron noticed John pause and shake his head, she stared after him curiously for a moment before then following after him.
The Connor's along with the newest member of the 'family' began to load the weapons into their SUV's they made quick work of the weapons themselves, the ammo was what took a great deal of time. After about an hour they were finished, and were quickly on their way home. Thought this time, Derek drove with Cameron and John, while Sarah drove with Alex, it was time for her to make a choice on whether or not to take a chance and trust this guy.
"Your mother is a strange woman." Sarah commented after about twenty minutes of driving.
"You can say that again." Alex replied dryly, as he stared out the window and watched as the scenery passed by.
"Did John choose you specifically for this mission?" Sarah asked, after a moment of silence.
"I volunteered." Alex answered, Sarah felt a shiver pass up her spine as he replied. His word were the same as Kyle's from all those years ago.
"Why?" Sarah inquired, as she shook off the feeling.
"I've given a lot of myself to John Connor. I've given him my blood, my sweat, my tears," Alex paused and raised his right arm, he had still been wearing the dark grey coat, he rolled the sleeve back, and showed it to Sarah. She stared at it for a moment, it looked normal, nothing seemed wrong with it, then she realized what it was, this arm didn't have the same sub-dermal fiber-weave that the rest of his body had, "I even gave Connor one of my arms." Alex finished.
"You said earlier that John asked you to do this." Sarah stated, trying to keep focused.
"John asked a few of us to do this... I was the one that volunteered." Alex clarified.
"What will you do? When you find her I mean, what will you do with John and his wife?" Sarah asked, glancing at the soldier out of the corner of her eye.
"Whatever I have to, too keep them alive. Like I said... John Connor was like a father to me... I'd die for him. I'll protect him with every fiber of my being." Alex stated, a small amount of passion evident in his eyes.
"He's still a kid... he makes stupid decisions sometimes. The fighting with our back's to the wall I can deal with, the constantly being hunted by SkyNet, I can deal with, what I can't deal with is not knowing when to let go. There are times when I think he's ready and then he goes and does something stupid and I'm sure that he's not. I just don't know what to do with him." Sarah stated, deciding to take a chance on this guy.
"John Connor once snuck into a SkyNet detention camp by himself and freed about two thousand people, he then leveled the entire complex by jury-rigging, several hydrogen fuel cells to explode, the whole time he was being attacked by a prototype T-800, modeled after the one that was sent back to protect him as a boy. He barely managed to escape before the whole damn place went up in flames. The year was twenty-nineteen and everyone thought he was crazy to do what he did. It was only after he had accomplished what they all assumed was impossible did everyone see him for the messiah that he is... John Connor is a genius, he's smart, he's tactful, he's an amazing tactician, and one hell of a fighter, but what makes him better then all the rest, what makes him so amazing, is his passion for life." Alex explained, he had a faraway look in his eyes the whole time.
"What do you mean?" Sarah asked curiously.
"The facility he snuck into, the one where he freed all of the prisoners there, he did all of that for one person, a man that John knew would be needed in the future. John risked his life, and nearly died, to rescue his father, Kyle Reese from that SkyNet detention camp," Alex paused as he thought of a way to answer her question, he finally thought of a good way to explain, her future son to her. "John doesn't hate them, the machines. If fact he loves them, in his eyes they're like children, being forced to fight for SkyNet. He want's to free them, to let them make their own choices."
"They're machines though, they can't be 'free', it's all numbers and codes for them, they don't know what freedom is." Sarah argued.
"I'm going to tell you something... and you're not going to like it. Before he sent her back in time, John inserted a program into Cameron's CPU, this program would trick her software into thinking it had been reprogrammed." Alex explained.
"What in the hell does that mean?" Sarah asked, shaking her head.
"When the resistance captured Cameron, instead of reprogramming her to fight for them, John wiped all of her standing orders. He then flipped the switch to allow her to learn, and woke her up. A machine without a standing order, will just stand around and do nothing, but Cameron didn't, she woke up, looked around and found that she had no purpose in life. She didn't have a standing order, therefore she had no reason to exist. This caused a lot of frustration within her CPU, a paradox if you would. She didn't have an order therefore she had no reason to exist, and yet she did exist, but she had no order. The first thing she tried to do was reinstate her previous order to kill John Connor, but she was having difficulties giving herself that order." Alex explained as they drove, Sarah listened intently, she had never known much about Cameron's back-story, and this was providing her with a lot of insight into the way the machine thought.
"She spent about two weeks pestering John to give her an order, it was pretty funny, Connor forbade anyone besides him from speaking in Cameron's presence, so that she wouldn't interpret anything they said as an order. Whenever she would ask him for an order he would reply with something nonsensical, or off topic, never asking anything of her, he didn't even ask her any questions, she just followed him around and annoyed him. Eventually she discovered a solution and asked John for help, she asked him to modify her CPU, so that she could give herself her own 'orders'. That was exactly what John had been waiting for, and he happily complied. He rewrote her code and gave her the ability to give herself, her own orders, this in turn effectively made Cameron the first machine since SkyNet to possess free will. Naturally the first order she gave herself was to kill John Connor, but as she was about to carry out the order, John asked her why she gave herself that order. She didn't know why, at first she thought that is was her mission but then she realized that she could change her mission perimeters at will. She then looked at John and asked him whether or not she was free to leave, he said that she was. She asked if she could stay, he said she could. She asked if she could fight, he said that she could. Finally she asked is she was in fact alive, John said that she was. It was at that moment, Cameron became self-aware. John then asked her if she would join the resistance... and she agreed." Alex explained.
"So... what does any of this have to do with that program you were talking about? Cameron became self-aware and then John reprogrammed her anyway?" Sarah asked, a lot of this was way over her head.
"No... The program that John wrote was to act like a lie... Cameron thinks she was reprogrammed... and so did you," Alex explained he now wore a devilish smile.
Sarah eye's widened as she drove, she now understood what he meant, "Cameron has been capable of changing her programming this whole time?"
"Yep... and like me... she volunteered for this mission..." Alex replied as he refocused his attention on the road.
Sarah felt a chill run up her spine as she thought about the tin miss, following in the car behind them, sitting next to her son, fully capable of deciding at any given second to end his life... … … 'Just like a human being'. That thought stuck with Sarah all the way home, and would continued to haunt her in the days to come.
Okay that's it for this chapter let me know what you think, starting to get more into the story, hopefully next chapter will be all story and little to no exposition. Let me know what you think and until then, SEE YA!