Chapter 171

I Know You

John Henry reported the location of the casino disturbance to John, Holly, and Bob.

"This is getting better by the minute." Bob said.

John was very worried as well. Depending upon Cameron's condition, there was no way to tell what she would do.

"I don't think she's reverted back to her Skynet programming." John said.

Holly was aware it was always a concern of Cameron's.

"It's something which always troubles her." Holly said. "She was able to fix herself the last time."

John felt an immense sense of guilt. When Cameron was trapped between the two trucks she told him she was fixed. His mother was screaming at him to deactivate her. Cameron told him she loved him and he loved her. He deactivated her anyway. In essence, he terminated her. It didn't matter if he reactivated her later on, he still terminated her when she said she was fixed and left him.

"We won't know what we face until we see it." John said.

Bob scanned the street as they approached the casino district.

"It will be the next casino coming up." Bob said. "I can see the sign."

John looked and could make out the sign now too. it wasn't the only thing he noticed. There were people going in all directions. It looked like chaos up ahead.

As Bob neared the location, hoards of people poured out of the casino onto the sidewalk and into the street.

John was worried as to what Cameron may have already done. He didn't hear any gunfire. It doesn't mean there wasn't any. He needed an update on any incident reports.

"Everyone keep your eyes peeled." John said. "We need to find her and get control of her."

John checked in with John Henry to see if there was any shooting yet.

John Henry looked at the surveillance cameras in the casino. There was no indication of any firearms being discharged. The potential was now there for it to happen.

"She's broken free of detention and is now armed." John Henry said. "One of the security guards pulled a gun on her when she broke her handcuffs. She tossed them around like rag dolls when they tried to bring her down physically. She pulled a fire alarm and exited the building."

John wasn't pleased to learn Cameron was armed. She wouldn't hesitate to use deadly force if confronted. Depending on the amount of physical force used against the security guards there could already be one or more termination.

"Beautiful." John said.

Holly tilted her head slightly when John said 'beautiful'. She quickly made the reference of the term being used as irony.

John was worried about what would come next. Since Cameron was armed, she was even more lethal now than she was before.

The three in the vehicle searched the area. They hoped to spot her. They needed to attempt to isolate her so she could be dealt with.

Holly was worried about the mass of people. Cameron could be anywhere in the crowd. She scanned all of the faces. She made an identification.

"There, I see her." Holly said.

Holly immediately opened the door and exited the moving vehicle. It caused a traffic accident next to them as a driver swerved to avoid Holly. She was actually already out of the way. She calculated her move and the timing to avoid the other vehicles.

John looked back at the accident. He didn't want their vehicle to be identified by any of those involved.

"Great." John said. "Get out of here."

Bob took off. He ran several lights. He tried to get ahead of Cameron on the other side of the location where Holly spotted her. They hoped to box her in or contain her. It might provoke a negative reaction.

John looked back at the spot the accident occurred as they went around a corner. It didn't appear it was severe enough to cause any injuries. No one followed them. It wasn't really their actions he was worried about. He was worried about Cameron's actions.

The girl moved away from the casino. She heard a traffic accident. She looked in the direction to assess the threat level. She made eye contact with a female. She was aware someone was now on an intercept course with her. She took a quick look back before she rounded a corner and ran. A pretty woman with brown hair and a shapely figure followed her. She noted the woman's voluptuous breasts. The pretty woman was able to match her speed. She headed down an alley. An SUV turned in ahead of her and stopped. It blocked her path forward. She turned to face her pursuer. The pretty woman was the immediate threat.

The pretty woman walked up and stood before her. She didn't try to attack her and no weapons were visible. There was a smile on her face. She looked very pleasant.

Holly could see Cameron was apprehensive. She didn't want to aggravate or upset her. Since her current condition was unknown, anything could happen.

"Cameron, it's me Holly." Holly said.

Cameron looked at her. The name didn't seem to ring a bell.

Holly saw her eyes flash red. She remembered from the reports Cameron identified herself as 'Allison'. She hoped for some type of recognition.

"Allison, it's me, Holly." Holly said.

She saw Cameron looked a little calmer, but not by much. She still appeared to be highly agitated.

Cameron looked intently at her.

"I know you." Cameron said.

Holly wanted to keep things calm.

"And I know you." Holly said.

Cameron's eyes returned to normal.

Holly thought it was a good thing. She knew Cameron was armed. She really didn't want to get shot, even though it wouldn't do anything more than cause minor sheath damage. She would take the rounds without any aggressive or evasive action. She would stand there and let Cameron shoot her if it came down to it. She tried to give her some reassurance.

"We're here to help you." Holly said. "I'm here to help you, Cameron."

Cameron looked a little agitated again at hearing her name. The name reminded her it was someone she didn't like.

"Who is - Cameron?" Cameron asked as she looked around.

Holly wanted to keep it honest and simple. She hoped the hard facts would help turn Cameron around. She knew it could also go the other way and start a confrontation.

"You are." Holly said. "Sometimes you've used the name 'Allison' in the past and in the future."

Cameron perked up at the mention of the future. It was very prevalent in her thoughts. It seemed like some place she wanted to go.

"The future?" Cameron asked. "Can you take me there? I want to go back to the future."

Holly wanted to keep a 'hook' in Cameron. She didn't want her to run off. One of the infiltration skills was to offer the 'mark' what they wanted. It always allowed one to move in closer.

"Yes. Once we get into the SUV at the other end of the alley you'll understand." Holly said. "I know how to go into the future."

Cameron was sure it was where she wanted to go. She looked at Holly intently. There were some things which began to 'click' in her mind. They actually seemed somewhat impossible.

"I've been inside your body." Cameron said. "I'm not sure when, or even how it was possible."

Holly wasn't sure how much to divulge. She didn't want to get specific. The current goal was to contain Cameron and try to get her into the SUV.

"Yes we were 'roommates' for over a year." Holly said. "We shared our existence in my chassis. We were as one, even if we were separate."

Holly was a little worried about what Cameron would remember in her current condition. It could get 'ugly'. The difference between thought and reality could become convoluted. It might not be possible to tell what was thought, as opposed to what was done.

More images begin to appear in Cameron's mind. They weren't all positive.

"I remember now. YOU wanted to have sex with my mate." Cameron said as her eyes glowed red again.

Holly was worried Cameron would try to fight. It appeared Cameron was now going to fight for her 'mate'. She wanted to get a few more facts out there. There was a big difference between what was thought and what was done.

"You know I didn't. YOU were there with me. John is waiting in the SUV for you." Holly said. "Please, come with me."

Cameron tilted her head slightly.

"John? Who's John? I want to find 'River'." Cameron said.

Holly told it like it was. She wasn't sure what the reaction would be. She believed it was better for Cameron to know the truth. Facts were facts, whether one wanted to accept them or not.

"John is your husband, and River went 'away'." Holly said. "She returned to her correct time period in the future."

Right now all Cameron could think about was River and how much she missed her. River cared about her. She wanted to be with someone who cared about her, not her body. She still wasn't sure why the pretty female referred to her body as a chassis earlier. It sounded very mechanical to her.

"It's why I must go into the future. I want her. I need her." Cameron said.

John and Bob exited the SUV and approached slowly towards Cameron and Holly. Holly motioned for them to stop and tried to explain what she'd found out so far.

"Cameron is highly disoriented and confused. She thinks she's 'Allison' and wants to go into the future." Holly said as she looked at John. "She wants to join River."

John hoped he could spark some positive response in Cameron. He tried not to think it could also become very negative, depending upon what Cameron remembered about him and his past actions

"Cameron - Allison, we can take you to where River was at if you come with us." John said. "We need to get out of here. We have a plane waiting to take you home."

The future seemed like 'home' to her. She was ready to go. The future offered the lure of freedom. She glanced back towards the casino she left from earlier. She didn't like the people there. They tried to confine her for nothing. She won fair and square. She didn't cheat. She only used her natural ability. It was her natural abilities which allowed her to save the passengers trapped on the ledge at the tunnel entrance and the derailment site. Right now she was ready to go.

"Back to the future?" Cameron asked.

Bob and John looked at each other.

"Yes." John said as he lied. "Back to the future."

He didn't want Cameron to run again.

Cameron appeared to be a little calmer once her desires were known. They offered her what she wanted.

"OK, let's go. I want to ride with her - Holly. I know her." Cameron said.

John wondered how he rated. He was almost afraid to ask. He still felt it was necessary. They didn't know the exact extent of what was wrong with Cameron yet. She could still be damaged from some type of encounter with Skynet forces.

"Do you know me?" John asked.

Cameron looked John up and down twice. His presence made her feel very uneasy.

"No…. Wait…. I remember you. You touched me." Cameron said. "I didn't like it at first. You still did it anyway. I couldn't resist. My body could not move when I wanted it to move."

Cameron ran her hands down her sheath. She paused at her breasts and continued down to her groin area.

"You made me feel pain." Cameron said. "You seemed older before."

Holly wondered if Cameron referred to Future John. Cameron always thought Future John had 'relations' with her in the future. It was Cameron's belief, even though there were no files to substantiate it.

She wanted to redirect Cameron away from where the conversation was headed. She would call her 'Allison' because it is what seemed to cause the least amount of stress.

"Come with me, Allison." Holly said. "We can catch up on girl stuff while the men chauffeur us to our plane."

Holly moved up and gently took Cameron's arm. She carefully guided her to the SUV.

Cameron paused as she passed John and frowned.

He smiled at her and the frown disappeared. It was replaced by her 'blank' look.

John and Bob looked at each other glumly and got back in.

Cameron glanced back uneasily at both of them.

John didn't like the revelation about Future John. It was still really about him. It sounded like Cameron was programmed not to 'resist' his advances at some point. Maybe it was earlier in her initial capture. Cameron told him what happened to captured female Terminators. They were reprogrammed to be compliant 'Metal Whores'. It was always done in an unofficial capacity and was frowned upon. It still happened.

He really wondered when things were going to get worse. It seemed like they were about to.

They skirted the casino district on the way back to the airport. They could still see people milling about and traffic was jammed. They arrived at the jet and boarded it without further incident. There was no indication anyone followed them. They specifically looked for some type of tail in case Cameron was under surveillance. They still didn't know what caused her current condition. They took off and headed for home.

John spoke with John Henry as they discussed what to do.

"Scrub, delete, crash, and sanitize everything you can. Send out and insert misleading information, flood them with Fake News. Overload their files and systems." John said as the plane flew. "I don't want the story about Cameron to go anywhere. She needs to remain unidentified. I don't want any descriptions of her out there either."

John Henry indicated he did it about the derailment, the ambulance ride, and the casino.

Cameron sat next to Holly. She could not help but look at Holly's breasts. They were much larger than hers.

Holly noticed and tried to make herself look smaller. It was pretty much impossible. There was a certain amount of mass and only so much room for it to move around.

Cameron saw it bothered Holly some. She turned away and looked around the cabin of the plane. She began to look agitated again in a few minutes.

She remembered she could fly a jet like this. She would feel more comfortable if she were at the controls. If she were at the controls, no one could take her to any place she didn't want to go. She didn't believe the jet could take her into the future. They would need to make a stop somewhere first.

"I want to fly." Cameron said.

She tried to move toward the cockpit.

John wanted to keep things under control.

"Cameron – Allison, it's not a good idea right now. These men have a job to do." John said. "We don't want them to lose their jobs."

Cameron tilted her head slightly.

John looked at Holly and Bob. It was a silent indication they may need to physically restrain Cameron. It might be sooner rather than later. There were hidden Tasers around the aircraft in case they needed to use them.

Cameron looked out a window. She thought the view could be much better and the flight a little more exciting.

"They're flying too high. I want to fly on the deck." Cameron said. "I can fly fifteen feet above the terrain through the canyons. It will make things much more exhilarating."

John didn't want to tell her 'no'. He knew Cameron didn't do well with a negative answer. He tried a different approach.

"We can do it next time." John said. "It won't be a problem."

John looked at Holly and Bob again. He was very worried.

Holly started to talk to Cameron again. She tried to keep her occupied and her mind from fixating on things it didn't need to fixate on.

"Do you like my nail polish? It's a color you picked out for me. You always pick out nice things for me…." Holly started. "You have taught me many things."

John saw Holly make Cameron look at her hand. He moved close to Bob and spoke in hushed tones.

"This happened before, Bob. It's like an anxiety attack. She doesn't know who she is. She can become violent easily." John said. "She almost killed a girl when she lied to her."

John didn't mention the hard shove she gave to him. He was pretty sure if he would have persisted he would have ended up with more than a hard shove the next time at the halfway house. He wasn't looking for a repeat now either.

Bob was worried about what Cameron might do inside the plane.

"Holly and I can restrain her for a while." Bob said. "We should be wheels down in fifteen minutes. Maybe Allison can meet us…."

John thought along similar lines about Allison. He wanted to know what Bob's thought was.

"Do you mean to have Allison meet us as 'River'?" John asked.

Bob remembered how it took four Terminators to hold down Cameron before. The best course of action would be to use a Taser.

"Yes, if it keeps Cameron from going on a rampage." Bob said. "It can go bad fast."

John could have gone without the rampage reminder. It still needed to be factored in and Allison needed to have protection. He wanted to avoid the Taser option if at all possible. He was sure when Cameron rebooted, she would be even more agitated.

"I don't want Allison to get hurt. I'll request Jim and Gail as well." John said. "Something should register soon and bring Cameron back…."

John wasn't sure what brought Cameron back the last time. He hoped she would remember who she was soon.

If it was almost killing the girl, he hoped she wouldn't go after Allison when she figured out she wasn't River.

Cameron only tried one other time to take control of the jet.

She stopped when Bob told her he didn't feel good.

"I'm airsick." Bob said. "Can you help me?"

Cameron went to him and looked him over. This also put her in easy reach for him to grab her without him needing to approach her.

The plane touched down and taxied to the area where Allison and the other Terminators were waiting for them.

Cameron looked around as they exited the plane. There was another woman and a man waiting for them. She noted the woman boldly exhibited a pair of breasts which were very large. It seemed to irritate her. The big busted woman reminded her of someone she didn't like. It was someone she wanted to 'kill'. Now she was very agitated again.

The four Terminators surrounded her. Cameron's eyes glowed red. Combat was about to break out.

Allison saw the situation rapidly start to fall apart. It was time to act. Jim warned her Cameron might try to harm her at some point. She didn't care. She was there to help Cameron. Cameron needed her right now.

"There you are." Allison said as she walked towards Cameron.

John was worried for Allison's safety.

Allison was worried about her own safety as well. It did not matter. Cameron needed help. She wasn't about to back away. She pushed her way past the Terminators to stand face to face with Cameron. The red quickly faded from her eyes.

There was a feeling of calmness, like a switch had been flipped.

"Oh, River, I've missed you." Cameron said as her eyes glowed blue.

Cameron's eyes then returned back to normal as she hugged Allison.

Allison thought Cameron was going to kiss her.

'Whatever.' Allison thought.

She really hoped Cameron wouldn't hurt her when she realized she wasn't River.

Cameron needed help and Allison stood her ground to help her friend and the woman she loved.

Allison looked at John perplexed. What was she supposed to do next?

Cameron was on the edge. Things could go either way. It seemed they were ready to erupt.

John lifted his hands out to his sides at shoulder height and shrugged in resignation. He didn't know what to do next either.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

I Know You

I know you
I know all about you
I know everything about you
I know more about you than you do

When the past is the future
Many things are strange
Can we ourselves
Ever be made to change

Events out of control
We try to arrange
No matter what we do
They always seem to rearrange

Some from their past
Can bring their animosity
Unable and unwilling
To acknowledge our generosity

You may relive the past saying
I know you
Don't forget
And I know you

Nobody

And I Know You

Our own mirror of time
Reflects what we want to see
We hide from ourselves
Truth emerging as a calliope

We think we know who we are
With many a suppressed thought
Empty words and hidden visions
Life hopelessly fraught with naught

Nothing can ever really be fixed
When everything is made to be broken
Our very self offered as a valueless token
Promises are already lies before they're spoken

Before we open a new book
We already know the story's ending
Everything that happens in between
Is really grandiose conceited pretending

When we speak to the mirror of time
Life's reflection answers truths adieu
I know you
And I know you

Nobody