Chapter 231

Hanna

Cameron and Holly discussed the new female Terminator who shared a copy of Holly's program.

Holly was upset and very displeased about it. She felt it was a personal insult to her. It seemed like unfair competition if nothing else. She would have preferred if Isabel would have been Resequenced with a different DNA sample. It was her program, but it wasn't her.

"I know it is 'me', but I still don't like it." Holly said. "I love Allison."

Cameron didn't see it as a big deal. The programs were identical. It meant there were 'two' of Holly at this point. They just looked different.

"The only thing different is your sheath and her sheath." Cameron said. "You're identical otherwise. It shouldn't be a problem. It's just like the last version of Isabel and I were."

Holly was aware what a problem it became. All three versions of Isabel were a problem. She could see why identical programs in separate chassis were different from being the 'same' in reality.

"I understand now why John was hesitant to be with you in Isabel's sheath. It's different." Holly said. "It's not the same."

To Cameron it was the same. The program was the program. There shouldn't be an issue. She didn't care for Holly questioning her decisions.

"How's it different? The program is the same. The sheath shouldn't matter. It's the person inside who should matter, not how they look on the outside." Cameron said. "If I was old, or fat, or ugly, wouldn't I still be the same person on the inside?"

Holly still felt Cameron missed the point. Theory was one thing, reality was another.

"You're not seeing it as others do." Holly said. "What you're saying is how it should be. For most people it's not. It's not how people react or what they do."

Cameron stuck to her guns. She was still irritated because John wouldn't touch her program in Isabel's chassis.

"What I'm saying is right." Cameron said. "Beauty is more than skin deep. Vanna understood it when I was inside the server without a chassis or sheath."

Cameron knew she was right. It was everyone else who was wrong.

Holly didn't want to get into it. A person may be who they were inside, but they also had an exterior shell. She thought it was a package deal. When someone interacted with someone else, it was the appearance as well as the person inside who they communicated with. She was aware Vanna communicated with Cameron when she was in the server originally. Vanna also knew what Cameron looked like. She saw her sheath and chassis, even if they were damaged. She knew Cameron looked like her long term lover Allison.

"Can we go? I don't want to be around here when - what are you calling her?" Holly asked.

Cameron went with the name Vanna suggested. She thought it was a good choice based upon her appearance.

"I'm calling her 'Hanna' for now." Cameron said.

Holly didn't really care what they called her. It was unfair competition the way she saw it.

"Whatever…." Holly said.

Cameron wondered if Holly was dissatisfied with the name. She remembered she wouldn't allow Holly to use the original name she chose for herself instead of her designation as Unit 710. Her actions then still bothered her.

"Do you have a different name you wish to choose?" Cameron asked. "'Honey' is still available. You may use it if you desire. I'm sorry I wouldn't let you use it originally. You still can if you want."

Holly didn't want to change anything about her. The time for making changes was long gone. Cameron even changed the color of her hair. She didn't have a choice in the matter either. It was like her original name. Cameron was always the one in control. Somehow the name Hanna went with the appearance of the Resequenced sheath.

"It's fine." Holly said. "Hanna is like Vanna. It seems appropriate."

Holly felt Allison liked her how she was. Allison always told her she was beautiful. Maybe 'Hanna' is what Allison would desire more. She was sure she was going to find out soon enough.

Cameron was pleased with Hanna's appearance. It was clear the apple didn't fall far from the tree.

Holly looked down the front of her sheath. She knew she possessed a few attributes Cameron, Hanna, and Sheila didn't. When it came to the size of certain female attributes, only Gail was larger than her. She still believed she was better proportioned and looked better.

"No. I like my current appearance, Cameron. I feel I'm 'pretty'. I also like the appearance of Hanna. I think Allison will like that version of me better as it looks like the woman she loves." Holly said. "The REAL woman she loves. The REAL woman I can never be. You know exactly what I mean."

Cameron could have done without the reminder she wasn't REAL. It was something she tried to rectify with the three girls from the future. She knew Savannah was her ace in the hole, it just wasn't time yet. Well, according to the others it wasn't. She disagreed. If something was going to happen, it was going to happen. What was the point in waiting? What was going to change? The human girls were REAL, she wasn't.

"There are some things we can't change." Cameron said.

Holly hung her head. She knew what she felt now was what Cameron felt all the time. They were very unpleasant feelings too.

"Allison loves you too, Holly, as do I." Cameron said. "Let's go for a ride or take a walk. We can patrol."

Cameron took Holly's hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. She didn't want her to feel so down. She didn't believe Holly needed to worry. They would find out soon enough.

"I just want to go out." Holly said. "Away…."

Holly couldn't imagine the pain Cameron must feel every time she tried to put the girls with John. Just thinking of a different sheath version of HERSELF with Allison, was killing her. She better understood Cameron's endless emotional torment. No wonder why self termination seemed like 'freedom' to Cameron. The thought already crossed her mind if Allison chose Hanna over her. There was no second place winner. Second place was just the first place loser.

John's team was at the temporal incursion site.

Jesse and John went to get some exercise. Gail went with them as well.

Gail wasn't sure if she went as 'protection', or as a concerned lover who was about to witness what she feared the most. It was the fear the one she loved would be taken away. She knew if Jesse ended up in John's bed with Cameron, she was never coming back. She knew Cameron was the prize. Cameron was the one everyone loved. Anyone would sacrifice anything or 'anyone' for that prize. She knew she would too.

John wanted to talk with Jesse and make sure she understood his point of view. They all knew what Cameron wanted, or said she did anyway. What they all wanted should matter too.

"Jesse, you're a beautiful woman. You're hotter than hot. I do see it and know it. I know what Cameron wants and why." John said. "I don't want to hurt her. I don't know how to make everyone understand. I can't make Cameron understand. I know whatever I do, or don't do, will hurt her."

Jesse 'adjusted' her top and a breast popped out. She made no effort to cover 'herself' the nipple ring glinted brightly in the sun. She didn't think a little advertising would hurt. She thought maybe she should ask John to tuck it back inside her top for her. If she could just get him to touch the ring, she knew she would have him hooked. He would then touch what the ring was attached to, and things would rapidly expand. She would make sure of it. She knew how to use her female attributes to their fullest extent.

John wanted to look away but he couldn't. His hand started to reach for her and then stopped. He didn't want to get ahead of himself or make a 'wrong' move.

Jesse didn't like his hesitation. It made her feel inadequate. Any other male would have had his hands all over her. She still believed some type of action needed to be taken one way or the other.

"If you do nothing, you hurt her as well." Jesse said. "You surely know it by now."

John pointed out it was all a giant step.

"Are you ready to be a mother?" John asked. "It's a big step in one's life."

Jesse's past always followed her. She carried a lot of baggage with her. There was nowhere for her to store it either. She could push it to the back of her mind, but it didn't stay there. It was always there waiting to come back out. It wasn't just the evil things she did. It was the way she enjoyed them at the time when she did them. Once she started on both males and females, each next one became easier to do. The one thing she noticed though was the excitement level seemed to diminish with each new one.

"No. I still feel the evil person I was, will haunt me." Jesse said. "I don't know if I would make a good mother. I don't think I will. I don't believe I'm suitable."

Jesse didn't know if the maternal instincts inside of her still existed. She remembered the way her mother took care of her and her sister. She didn't know if she would be able to do the same thing on her own. She strongly doubted it. She knew she would need Sheila and Gail both to help her with an infant.

Gail saw it all slipping away. She wanted to get and keep her foot in the door. She didn't want to lose Jesse again. It was bad enough to lose Duplicate Jesse to termination. Because of the explosion of the Terminator's power cell, Duplicate Jesse was gone. There was nothing but a smoking hole left in the ground where she was. Somehow it seemed it would be worse if she could still see Jesse every day, but she wouldn't be hers anymore. She was sure it would be worse. The words escaped from her mouth before she could stop them.

"I would." Gail cut in.

Jesse was all for the concept. She just didn't feel up to it.

"Yes, between you and Sheila, you could raise the baby." Jesse said. "You will both make a better mother than I ever could be."

Gail, along with her program clone Sheila, could do everything but nurse the infant.

"You only need to bear it and act as a wet nurse, we will do the rest." Gail said. "Cameron has provided us with extensive programming on caring for a child and raising it. I, we, will be at your side 'always'."

John thought about it. Cameron never stopped her meddling. How far would she go to intrude into someone's life? It seemed like she already made more than a few intrusions into everyone's life.

"I'm sure Cameron has." John said. "Is there anything she won't do? Is there anything she hasn't done?"

Gail knew there was one thing Cameron hadn't done.

"Cameron hasn't become Skynet, yet." Gail said.

Gail wasn't joking.

John could have done without the reminder. He could see the direction things were headed even if they were rather indirect and drawn out.

Jesse thought it was good news Cameron hadn't gone off the deep end completely.

"It's really wonderful news to me, sort of." Jesse said. "It could be worse. There's always more bad news on the way."

Everything seemed like bad news to John anymore.

"What isn't these days?" John asked. "Everything seems like one big crap sandwich and we all have to take a bite."

Jesse knew things could always get worse. No matter how bad they were, they could always get worse. She experienced plenty of it firsthand. Was it someone else's fault she was who she was? Maybe it was all her fault.

Allison saw Cameron and Holly depart on foot. It was different. They usually drove. She watched them walk away.

She noticed 'Vanna' stood there and looked at her and then she smiled.

"You're back already." Allison said.

She gave 'Vanna' a big kiss.

'Vanna' returned it.

Allison stepped back and looked at her.

Something wasn't right.

It wasn't Vanna's kiss. It was Holly's kiss. She thought about 'Vanna's' perfect appearance in front of her. There was only one conclusion to make.

"Holly?" Allison asked.

A strange feeling flooded Allison. It seemed impossible.

Hanna was surprised she was detected in the first second of physical contact.

"Yes and no, I'm Hanna. My program is a copy of Holly's program. I've been Resequenced to the adult version of Savannah Weaver's DNA." Hanna said. "I'm Holly on the inside and Vanna on the outside."

It took Allison a little bit to process her statement and put it all together. It all started to make some sense now even as impossible as it seemed. She was aware of what Hanna's sheath looked like previously.

"You were, Isabel? I can't believe you look like Savannah, I mean Vanna, now." Allison said. "I can honestly say you look and feel just like Vanna."

Allison would like to take a specific look elsewhere to verify it. It would seem to be a rather crude request. It's still something she desired to see herself. She believed it was Vanna's most beautiful female attribute.

"Now there is a Terminator copy of Jesse, Vanna and you." Hanna said. "How did you know I'm 'Holly'?"

Allison knew her way around the 'female block'. She was aware of different females' physical attributes, their responses to her touch, and how they touched and kissed. There were a few things which concerned her. She wanted to address them subtly.

"It was by the way you kissed. I know my lovers inside and out. Are you going to adopt this form as 'Holly'?" Allison asked.

Allison hoped not. She loved Holly the way she was. She didn't want her to change anything.

Right now Holly and Hanna were the same identical program, only the sheath was different.

"The choice is for you to decide, Allison. I want to be Holly in either sheath. You may pick it for me." Hanna said. "I want you to be happy. I want you to have what you want. To make you happy will make me happy."

It seemed pretty straight forward to Allison at this point.

"No offense, but I love Holly just like she is." Allison said. "I already have a lover 'like' you."

Hanna felt a little sting with the reminder. She was 'Holly' too. Vanna was something she could never be, even if she could look like her. It wouldn't be the same.

"Holly will be very pleased to hear it. Do you wish to be with me now?" Hanna asked. "We can experiment. Now is your chance to see if anything is different."

Allison really wanted to 'check' Hanna out. She also needed to show some restraint right now. She was very aware how hard this was on Holly. Sacrifice was the true test of love. She would need to let her personal desires slide for now. Who knew what would happen going forward.

"No, I want to be with Vanna and Holly as they both are and how they are." Allison said. "Those are the people I fell in love with. Those are the people I love just the way they are."

Hanna gave Allison a big hug.

"Thank you, Allison." Hanna said. "Holly will be so happy you said it and made these choices. As 'Hanna' I'm disappointed you didn't choose me. As 'Holly' I love you more than ever."

Allison hoped it was out of the way. It was at least for now. There was a bigger issue for her to deal with. It was her younger sister. She continued to feel she was going to do the wrong thing.

"I'm happy with them as well." Allison said. "Can you help with Summer? It's overwhelming for me. I'll never make a good mother."

Hanna smiled. As 'Holly' she knew just what to do.

"Yes. Show me where she's at now." Hanna said. "I know what to do the same as 'myself', Holly. I'll assist you."

Jim waited for the future Gray to pull away. He asked John Henry to check into the vehicle the man currently drove. It came back registered to a female.

Derek and Kyle heard the com traffic.

"It doesn't sound like a good development." Kyle said.

Derek thought of the earlier speculation. It was spot on.

"It's what we figured." Derek said.

Kyle didn't like the way Grays treated females.

"I guess it was." Kyle said.

Jim obtained the address.

"The new information could explain why he wasn't at the address we received about his residence." Jim said. "He may have been engaged in other activities."

Derek held his M4. He was ready to teach the Gray a new activity.

"We have him now." Derek said.

Kyle wanted to take care of business and wrap things up. There were more fish to fry.

"Let's get him isolated and smoke him." Kyle said. "We can move on to the next target."

Derek wondered about the female. It seemed like something they should look into.

"We can check on the woman." Derek said.

Jim didn't think it was necessary. Her condition or well-being was irrelevant.

"It's outside of the mission parameters." Jim said. "We can terminate the man and move on to the next target. This is the action you wanted."

Derek knew it was true, but they still needed to help someone if they could.

"It won't take us long to check." Derek said. "It's something we need to do, Jim."

Kyle wanted to mention she could be like one of the girls in the Resistance. He thought of a better way to phrase things instead.

"We can see if she's a victim or a collaborator." Kyle said. "It sounds more in the mission parameter. We can deal with the situation better when we know more."

Jim followed the man through light traffic. Kyle's plan would ensure there were no loose ends.

"We can look into it." Jim said.

Derek thought about the route they were currently on. There was some repetition.

"Is this guy headed to some place specific, or just leading us around in circles?" Derek asked.

Jim was aware they passed the same location a few times from different directions.

"He may be checking for a tail." Jim said.

Kyle became a little more concerned. It might be something deeper

"He may be setting us up for an ambush too." Kyle said.

No sooner had Kyle finished with his statement, than the man pulled into an alley. He got out and looked around. He went into the rear of a building he passed three times.

"I think we have something here." Derek said. "It might be a target too."

Jim thought about what was on the street side of the building.

"It's the backside of a local shop." Jim said.

Kyle thought it must be something different.

"Why would he go in the back way?" Kyle asked.

Derek could see it was something sinister as well.

"Maybe it's a backroom deal." Derek said.

They thought about going in the back door after him. Seconds later the man reemerged with a box.

"I wondered what that is, and why he needed to obtain it there." Kyle said.

Jim was pretty sure things were going to expand into a bigger operation. He thought about notifying John Henry for any additional Terminators he could spare. He knew Cameron was tied up in Palmdale and John was off in the foothills with a team.

The man placed the box in the back seat. He went around to the trunk and opened it. He looked inside and closed it quickly.

Jim zoomed in when the man first opened the trunk. He could see what was inside.

"There is a bound figure in the trunk." Jim said.

Kyle thought it narrowed down the choices considerably.

"Were they dead or alive?" Kyle asked.

Jim hadn't detected any movement. It didn't mean they were dead either.

"Unknown." Jim said.

Derek wondered if it was the female who the vehicle was registered to.

"Was it a male or a female?" Derek asked.

Jim was unable to get a good look at the figure.

"Unknown." Jim said.

The man got back in the car and drove away.

They waited a bit and followed him out of the alley. They didn't want to lose him now. There were two things they wanted to know. What was in the box he retrieved, and who was in the trunk of the car.

Cameron and Holly patrolled the side streets around the Young residence.

Holly wanted to know what the 'end game' was.

"Cameron, what are you really doing?" Holly asked.

It seemed straight forward to Cameron.

"I'm protecting John and the 'future'." Cameron said.

Holly thought it was a little more involved.

"And what else?" Holly asked.

Cameron stuck with the facts as she believed them.

"I'm doing what's necessary." Cameron said.

Holly wanted a few answers for herself. She wanted to know about the missing Terminator from the Resistance base.

"Where's the other female Terminator?" Holly asked. "Everyone knows you took her."

Cameron looked at Holly. There was no need to lie. She trusted Holly.

"I have her." Cameron said. "She'll be conducting missions for me."

Holly wasn't sure if it was even 'Cameron' who she dealt with at this point.

"Am I talking to her now?" Holly asked.

Cameron played it out a little.

"Maybe…." Cameron said. "Why do you ask?"

Holly pointed out the obvious. It was meant to be an insult as much as a statement of fact.

"You haven't thought about taking Summer away from Claire yet today." Holly said.

Cameron quickly looked around. There was a deep rooted fear inside her.

"I can't do it, Holly. You must protect them from me." Cameron said. "You must help protect me from 'myself'. I'm afraid I'll terminate Allison's parents and take both the Young girls."

Cameron was very worried about what she might do on her own impulses.

Holly was surprised by some of the recent activity on her chip.

"I have been." Holly said. "It was an 'order' you, as Duplicate Cameron, or River, left on my chip. It 'appeared' after Summer was born."

Cameron experienced a few of those 'orders' recently too.

"Yes. I've experienced those 'orders' also appear on my chip. They're hidden and encoded very deep in our programming." Cameron said. "It seems to be a type of safeguard."

Holly knew River tried to help Cameron before she left.

"Someone is looking out for you." Holly said.

Cameron got a far off look on her face.

"Yes, she's a wonderful girl. I miss her." Cameron said. "I love River. I want to be with her."

Holly was sure how it would play out.

"I feel when your life is done here with John, she'll be waiting for you in your future…." Holly said.

Cameron looked a little lost in 'time' right now.

"I believe it as well, Holly. She'll come for me then." Cameron said as her mind was light years away. "I know she will…."

'She's So Fine' by 'Flash Cadillac', played in Cameron's mind.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

Forget Me Not

Forget me
Forget me not
Life overshadows
It happens a lot

Maybe like a vampire
Who shuns the daylight
Causing pain and anguish
Leaving behind fright

There is no point to argue
Let alone fight
Words in my mind
I often recite

In the burning sun
Its radiance glows bright
My flesh is warmed
As my soul gets frostbite

If there is no wind
I must be a kite
Waiting for a gust
To take up flight

I'm like a shadow
A shadow at night
No matter how hard one looks
It remains out of sight

Feel the cold steel
Aim the red dot
Forget me
Forget me not

Nobody