Chapter 15

Me, Myself and I

Cameron was extremely pleased she'd been able to carry out her mission and return John to the present. It was something she was unsure would actually happen. She hadn't planned to spend several months in the future when she'd left. It was necessary to take care of a few things.

She left John with Sarah. She figured they needed a lot of catching up to do. It would be a special time for them and to reaffirm their family bonds. Sarah previously confided in her she didn't think John would return for her as his mother. Sarah believed he would return for her, as someone he cared deeply about. It was clear Sarah was hesitant to use the word 'love', even though she knew it's what it was.

Cameron didn't really want to know what other types of interaction John and Allison may have shared together. She needed to remind herself John was free to choose. He'd been stuck in the future. Allison was the one there. She'd probably provided him with 'comfort' and the human 'female companionship', he seemed to desire over 'robot love'. She knew John was the one who needed to make the decision. If she 'forced' him to choose her, then it wasn't a choice at all. It wouldn't be anything 'real'. It would be as fabricated as her construction was.

There were some other matters for Cameron to attend to.

Cameron, Bob and Jim headed toward the lab. She wanted to check all three of them over and update her 'Cameron server'. Once again, she wanted to create a 'Master File' to be downloaded onto her chip. She especially wanted all of 'Bob-Cameron's' interactions with John and Allison. John was entitled to his free will. She wasn't there when he was all alone in a strange and violent place. She wanted to try to find out what the choice was.

The last time John was presented with a choice, John chose someone else over her. She noted her hand now began to glitch. It hadn't done so the entire time she was in the future with John. Now when she thought about what John did with Riley, and probably did again with Allison, it caused her much grief. The feeling of 'not good enough' began to creep back in.

Jim was still irritated about the events which occurred in the future before he'd arrived. He liked to push the issue to make a point. He looked at Cameron and then at Bob.

"Why did we have to bring the 'Bitch Whore' back?" Jim asked.

'Bob' was a copy of Cameron's program too. It was copied in the future by John so he could have Allison return Cameron's original chip. By doing so, he was able to have 'Cameron' be around him and watch over him, even if it was in a male chassis.

Bob didn't see what the big deal was or why Jim was so 'ate up'. He wanted to point out the obvious. They both ran the same program. It was Cameron's program.

"I'm you and you're me." Bob said.

Jim returned his usual response.

"But if you're me, then who am I?" Jim asked.

Cameron became annoyed as they started. It was some of the banter which went on between Jim and Bob. They were both her program. They'd developed very distinct personalities at this point. She told them to stop arguing. The same thing happened over and over. It irritated her more and more.

"You're both me. I have the original chip. You might want to take a look in the mirror." Cameron said. "I also have the original chassis."

Jim didn't want to let it go. He never did.

"You saw the 'Bitch Whore' chassis Bob was in." Jim said. "I think something happened."

Cameron wondered about it herself. It was another reason why she wanted ALL of 'Bob-Cameron's' files. John was going to need to come clean at some point, once she'd uncovered the evidence. She'd avoided the issue as much as possible when they were in the future.

Bob was very defensive over what happened. It wasn't his fault. John was the one who'd chosen the original female chassis which looked like Riley. The amount of time his chip was in it was very minimal. It was only until they'd found his current chassis.

"I was only in it for two days." Bob said. "Nothing happened."

Jim wasn't sold.

"It only takes two minutes." Jim said.

Bob was upset now.

"Are you looking for another reboot already?" Bob asked as he moved towards Jim.

Bob and Jim stood facing each other. The same thing seemed to occur often.

Cameron was tired of it continually happening. She grabbed both of them and forcefully jerked them apart. She held each of them by the collar.

"Enough. We have work to do." Cameron said angrily. "Stop this constant bickering. It's driving me insane."

Cameron feared she was insane anyway. The incessant bickering was going to make it happen, if it already hadn't. She thought about the earlier event with Cameron Two attempting to self terminate on John Henry's server. She watched the interaction between Bob and Jim in the future. She thought about it right now. She was sure it was all proof she was unstable.

She glared at Bob and Jim one more time as she released them. She felt she'd made her point. Something told her it wouldn't be for very long.

Bob and Jim backed away from each other and resumed what they were doing. They constantly looked back and forth at each other and at Cameron.

It was a 'tinder box' ready and waiting to explode.

Sarah spent a lot of time with John. It was because Cameron, all three of 'her', spent the last two months with John.

She was curious about what other interaction went on between John and Allison. There was no additional explanation. Vanna pretty much dragged Allison away from John and her.

Vanna and Allison went off together to 'catch up'. They needed to do a lot of catching up to make up for the time apart.

It was a dark time with both of them separated and alone.

Vanna wasn't so sure Allison was all alone. She saw the way Allison looked at John.

Later on:

Vanna wanted to speak with Cameron.

Cameron reassured Vanna again to pursue her own life. It's what she intended to do with John.

Vanna wanted to express her feelings to Cameron. She felt too many things were left unresolved. She wanted there to be a little more. She also didn't want to intrude. She wasn't exactly sure how to proceed. She didn't even know if there was a path to go forward. There was something she needed to say.

"Cameron…." Vanna started.

Cameron knew what was coming and how it was going to hurt Vanna. She'd said the words to John on several occasions and knew the pain of rejection.

"DON'T say it." Cameron interrupted.

Vanna looked distraught and confused. She didn't like how Cameron cut her off. She was focused on her own feelings.

"I…." Vanna started.

Cameron wanted to soothe Vanna. The road she was about to enter would be a very rocky one with no destination in sight. She didn't want to cause further complications for both of them.

"Vanna, you have what you want back again. Your life can resume where it stopped. Not everyone has the same chance in life." Cameron said. "You need to see what's in front of you for the victory it is. You need to think about Allison as well. It's not just about you or me. Please…."

Vanna couldn't change her feelings. How could love just be turned off? She didn't think it was possible. She did understand the need for control. She needed to think about more than herself. She didn't want to distress Cameron. She saw the slight glitch of her left hand a few times.

"I understand, Cameron." Vanna said. "I'm sorry."

Cameron was close to 'caving in'. There was a lot more to it now than there used to be. She could feel it inside of her. It was all in her head. She knew it was what humans perceived as being in their heart. She couldn't take it anymore. She needed to physically leave the area.

She took a long look into Vanna's eyes. She reached up and gently touched Vanna's cheek. She resisted the compulsion to give Vanna a kiss, a real kiss. She spoke what she believed needed to be.

"All is as it was." Cameron said and walked away.

Tears silently streamed down Vanna's cheeks.

"I love you, Cameron." Vanna whispered softly after Cameron left.

As Cameron walked away, she heard it. She understood Vanna's love was pure and based on who and what she was, not just her appearance. It meant a lot to her based on how Vanna actually saw her. She remembered the hours they'd spent interacting when her program was trapped inside of a metal box. It was before her sheath was repaired. It actually made her time trapped inside the metal box tolerable. Her left hand began to glitch. A single tear slid down her cheek.

Cameron knew love was about sacrifice. Sometimes it was necessary to let someone go, or let go of them, for what was best for them. It was love. She glanced down at her sheath as she wiped the tear away. John's desire for her seemed to be based on her appearance. She needed to make herself look Tight so John would want her. She couldn't help but look back where she'd left Vanna.

Vanna and Allison moved into the quietness of Vanna's room.

There was a nagging question which troubled Vanna. There was no easy way to ask it without asking it. She asked Allison when they were alone about her and John.

They both knew it would come up sooner or later.

Vanna wanted to know if they'd made love.

"How was it?" Vanna asked. "Is it what you wanted? Is it what you want going forward?"

Allison didn't answer.

Vanna wanted an answer. She wanted to know where she stood at this point. Cameron just 'pushed' her away. She wasn't really sure if 'pushed' was the right word. If anything, Cameron wanted her to look at her past, before she looked for a new future. She actually thought it was rather magnanimous on Cameron's part. She believed Cameron was as unsure as she was about where she was headed. It was the unknown, even if everything was already known. She directed her attention back to Allison.

"Well?" Vanna asked. "Did you? What happened?"

Allison tried to dodge the question again.

"What do you mean, 'What happened'?" Allison asked.

Vanna became very irritated.

"I saw how you looked at him." Vanna said.

Allison wasn't blind. She saw the same thing with Vanna and Cameron. It made her feel a little cynical.

"Are you going to 'sic' your Metal girlfriend on me? I saw how you looked at her." Allison replied. "You need to look at yourself, before you look at me."

Vanna was angry now. She didn't like how Allison referred to Cameron. It upset her as much as it insulted her. Cameron wasn't responsible for how she came into existence. She snapped at Allison

"She'll do it on her own if YOU did anything." Vanna said. "I know you always wanted a little more."

It always left Vanna with an empty feeling.

Allison didn't like where the conversation was going. It was a bunch of drama over nothing. She'd been separated from Vanna for a long time. Now wasn't the time for angry words or ill thoughts. There was no reason for them to be jealous of each other. They never let it bother them in the future when they'd shared with others.

"Look, I don't want to argue over stupid things, especially if they didn't happen." Allison said. "The closest thing I've experienced to sex since you left, was the near abuse by those Scavengers."

Vanna still wasn't sold. She knew Allison's 'needs'.

"Are you saying it was a full year of nothing?" Vanna asked. "I know you, Allison. You NEED to 'scratch your itch'."

Allison spent a lot of nights alone with only herself.

"I did 'scratch my itch'. I did it myself." Allison said. "It's nothing new. I've been doing it for a long time. You know it. It's something we all did. It gave us a moment to escape a world filled with darkness and no real future."

It was all Vanna experienced too. She'd done a lot of it recently as she thought about Cameron. Sometimes it was a dozen times a night. It was like she couldn't get enough, no matter how many times it was. She didn't want Allison to worry about her either.

"I did too. It all ends now." Vanna said. "Our hands get a rest from ourselves."

Allison tried to reach out.

"Now they're for each other again." Allison said.

Vanna smiled at Allison.

"Stop teasing me." Vanna said.

Allison touched Vanna's hair. There was a frown on her face. She really loved Vanna's natural red hair. It made her very distinctive in the future. She was aware it wasn't always a good thing either. She said what she felt.

"I want you to change your hair back. It was so beautiful before." Allison said. "I don't like it now. I want you to be you. I want everything to be like it was."

The talk about hair reminded Vanna about some changes elsewhere.

"Speaking of hair…." Vanna smiled. "I have a surprise for you…."

They moved closer and embraced. They kissed soft and slow as they started to remove each other's clothes….

Allison was surprised….

She reached out and touched. It wasn't something she'd expected to see. She was even more excited now than she'd been before.

"Damn, it looks HOT…." Allison said. "It's so smooth."

Vanna was very pleased she'd completed all of her treatments. The only hair on her body was now on her head.

"It's permanent too." Vanna said.

Allison was highly aroused already. Vanna's statement pushed her a little further.

"Now you're really teasing me." Allison said as they fell into each other's arms.

Cameron was with Bob and Jim.

The inevitable argument started again. It just NEVER stopped.

"You're not the Boss of me." Bob said.

Jim faced Bob.

"And you don't own me." Jim replied.

Cameron came back over to them. It was too much for her. She realized it was a reflection of her. Since they both ran her program, she was really dealing with 'herself'. She was sure it was what made it even more irritating. She wanted to end the problem once and for all. There was only one way to do it.

"Look, we need to integrate our three chips back into mine so there is only one 'Cameron'. The other choice is to erase your chips and reprogram them." Cameron said. "I can't take much more of this. I didn't know what a 'Bitch' I could be…."

It was fine with Jim. As Cameron Two, he'd already tried to self terminate.

"I would rather be erased than have anything to do with the 'Bitch Whore.' How could he take the 'Riley looking body' after all the trouble the terminated 'Bitch Whore' caused?" Jim asked. "What were they thinking?"

Bob felt defensive. He didn't have any control over where the copy of Cameron's chip was placed.

"I was only a chip in John's hand when he made the selection. I wasn't involved." Bob said. "None of it was my fault."

Jim felt John made the choice so he didn't need to use 'Rosie Palm'.

"I bet." Jim said. "Maybe the chip wasn't the only thing in John's hand."

Bob was frustrated. He'd already explained the situation hundreds of times.

"I didn't have a choice. It was the only female chassis there. John chose it." Bob said. "As soon as I powered up with my new chip, I said I need a different chassis, ask John. It was the first thing I said. It was the very first thing I said."

Cameron heard this same exact argument over and over.

She hung her head in resignation.

"How many times are we going to do this?" Cameron asked.

She didn't expect an answer but received one anyway.

"So far it has been four hundred and seventy three times." Jim said.

It was the final straw.

Cameron snapped.

"STOP!" Cameron shouted.

Bob still responded to Jim and ignored Cameron. He pointed out he'd needed to assist Jim.

"Besides, I carried you into the TDE room." Bob continued.

Jim saw it differently. He didn't believe his incapacitation was his fault.

"If you'd been a little quicker, I wouldn't have taken the 'juice' and gone offline." Jim quickly retorted.

Cameron thought about disabling her audio input. She needed to refocus everyone.

"We need to go on a mission." Cameron said. "I can't take this anymore."

Cameron glared angrily at Bob and Jim.

Bob could see Cameron was on the edge. He tried to redirect the conversation.

"Too bad there aren't any Scavengers here now." Bob said.

Cameron nodded. They'd done a lot of 'clean up' before they left the future.

"We did hunt down a lot of them." Cameron said.

Jim was proud of their work and why.

"It was six hundred and twenty seven to be exact." Jim said.

Bob was pleased with what they'd done and why too.

"They would have become Grays eventually anyway. It was a preemptive strike." Bob said. "We protected a lot of females in the timeline from further abuse."

Cameron wanted the 'problem' eradicated for what was done to Allison and Vanna. She wanted to get some revenge, as well as some 'pay back'.

"We did it for what almost happened to Allison. I needed to repay a 'debt'." Cameron said. "It was personal to me."

Cameron wanted to avenge what was done to the girls from the future. It was especially for Allison. It was because of what she'd done to her Allison - Future Allison.

"Payback is a Bitch." Bob said.

Jim glared at Bob. He wanted to get out another dig

"And you're a 'Bitch Whore'." Jim said.

Bob looked back angrily at Jim.

"It wasn't my fault." Bob said.

Cameron couldn't take it any longer.

"ENOUGH!" Cameron shouted.

Bob and Jim looked at her.

Jim thought they better change the subject.

"You were very enticing bait for Skynet and Scavengers." Jim said to Cameron.

Cameron nodded with a faint smile

"We did work well as a team." Cameron said.

Bob thought they'd accomplished a lot.

"We also destroyed many Skynet facilities and over a hundred Terminators." Bob added.

Cameron saw it as a necessity.

"The Scavengers deserved it. They pillaged by choice and chose not to be part of the Resistance. The Terminators were only following their programming." Cameron said. "Maybe it's something John Henry can work on with you two. It needs to be done before we have a violent altercation or a double termination."

Jim bumped into Bob.

"Watch it - Bitch." Bob said.

Jim glared angrily at Bob.

"You watch it - 'Bitch Whore'." Jim said.

Cameron clenched her fists as her eyes began to glow red.

Bob and Jim faced each other.

"Here we go again…." Cameron said.

"You don't own me." Bob said

"And you're not the Boss of me." Jim replied.

"SHUT UP!" Cameron screamed.

Cameron grabbed both of them by the neck and lifted them off of the ground. She violently shook them back and forth a few times before she threw both of them to the ground.

She understood why she hated herself at times. She pulled out her Taser.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

Me, Myself And I

There are many people
Who can enter our life
Which of them will bring comfort
Which of them will bring strife

We have those who use
They are very greedy
They search and hunt
To abuse the needy

When we reach out
What will we find
Will it be pleasure and joy
Or end as an attack on our mind

Everyone one is out for themselves
They're all very unreliable
We can't count on them
That fact is undeniable

When push comes to shove
On whom can we always rely
The answer sadly is only
Me, myself and I

Nobody