Chapter 237

Trouble

John wanted to try and track where Cameron was at and what she was doing. It was clear she set up a duplicate facility somewhere. They wanted to know where. It wasn't because he didn't trust Cameron. It was his fear of her fear she became Skynet which worried him. It seemed she worked towards the very goal even, if she couldn't see it. They all could see it.

He wasn't sure what she thought she was doing. He understood her desire to have a facility separate from anything Mrs. Weaver was involved in. He didn't think it was necessary. An alternate location would be good for the Resistance. It didn't need to be something separate from the Resistance, controlled by a cyborg, and staffed by cyborgs without any human involvement. It really did seem like a recipe for disaster.

John worked with John Henry and Bob to find a way to track her. They felt it was for her own good. There was speculation she captured and reprogrammed Terminators on her own to work just for her. It was even suspected she may have completed at least one clone of herself which would be identical in every way. Everything she did in secret, seemed like the very things the Resistance fought against. It was why it worried him.

It worried everyone. Well, everyone except Cameron.

John asked John Henry to make some 'traceable money'. They were aware of a new drug operation. They wanted to conduct a drug transaction and get the traceable money planted with the new operation. They would wait for Cameron to 'take down' the operation and see where the cash ended up at after she confiscated it. It should be the location of her secret base.

They weren't sure of any other way to track her. The main thing was to find out where her base was located so they could keep track of what was actually occurring there. They didn't think it was anything sinister, at least not yet.

John went out with Bob to make the 'buy'. He wanted to do it himself. Bob refused to let him approach the drug dealers alone. Bob reminded him drug deals could go bad fast. There were plenty of instances in the news about them. Bob would make the purchase instead.

He watched as Bob approached the vehicle where the drugs were sold from. The exchange seemed to happen without any difficulties.

Bob walked back to the SUV.

"I made the drug buy." Bob said.

John looked all around them. It was a shady location. He didn't even like being in the area. It felt unsafe, just to be there.

"Was there any trouble?" John asked.

Bob showed a faint smile.

"They were afraid I might be a LEO." Bob said.

John could picture it. Bob was very intimidating looking.

"So what changed their minds?" John asked.

Now Bob gave a real smile.

"It was when I took the drugs away from them, then gave them the money anyway. Then I said, 'Let's Party', and gave some drugs back to them." Bob said. "They took them before I left. They know they aren't supposed to use anything they are there to sell. I made their day."

John was aware the next part of the operation may take some time for everything to play out.

"So now we need to wait for John Henry to track the cash and see where it goes." John said.

Bob didn't look convinced. He attempted to follow Cameron more than a few times. He even placed trackers on her vehicle or her gear. He was never been able to slip one on to her. He wouldn't want to be caught doing it. Maybe it was why he never tried very hard to do so. He didn't want to spark a direct confrontation with her.

"Cameron will be hard to outsmart." Bob said. "She plays to win."

John nodded as he reflected on his past interactions with Cameron. It often seemed she was several steps ahead of him from day one.

"I'm well aware of it. I think she's outsmarted me since the first day I met her." John said. "I wonder if she outsmarted Future John as well. I wonder if she even knows she's doing it."

John really wondered if Cameron would end up 'outsmarting' herself. It might be the point at which she became Skynet.

Bob was sure John was on to something.

"I think we both have a pretty good idea of the answer." Bob said.

They knew it would take some time for Cameron to 'intercept' the traceable money they planted with the 'drug deal'. There was always the chance it could end up elsewhere. Wherever it went, it would give them a new target which they could give to Cameron at a later date. She probably was aware of all the target locations anyway. She always waited to act until it could make the most impact against the perpetrators.

There were times John really wondered why Future John sent Cameron into the past. Since they were already out, he wanted to reinforce one of the operations currently underway.

"I'm afraid we do…." John said. "Let's go back up Kyle and Derek."

Bob knew he would need to make sure John didn't push anything.

"Affirmative…." Bob said.

John smiled, it never got old.

Cameron was sure Cameron Too was going to be a problem. Cameron Too was 'her' in every way at this point. They were identical. It didn't occur to her it was the problem. Since she disliked herself for multiple reasons, it seemed to carry over into her clone. Why would she like the clone any better? Why would the clone like her any better? They would soon see each other as adversaries.

"Cameron Too, there's been a change of plans." Cameron said.

Cameron Too didn't like it. She won the coin toss. John was to be hers….

"John is MY husband and I plan to be with him often." Cameron Too said. "It was what you agreed to. It's what's going to happen. I'm going to do everything you haven't been doing. I'm going to do it better than you did as well. You don't know the prize you actually have. I do. Your loss is my gain."

Cameron gritted her teeth a little but kept her cool for now. She went over what her new plan was for Cameron Too.

Cameron Too didn't like what Cameron planned.

"It isn't what our plan was." Cameron Too said.

Cameron was afraid of what the reaction was going to be. She didn't plan to change her new plan. She simply reiterated it.

"It's the plan now." Cameron said.

Cameron Too felt Cameron was unstable.

"It's your plan, not mine." Cameron Too said. "Do it yourself."

Cameron hoped to keep things civil. The idea seemed to slip away. She didn't have many options left. She went straight to the point.

"You're going to need to submit to chip extraction or reprogramming." Cameron said.

Cameron Too thought it was something Cameron should want for 'herself'.

"No, you can submit your chassis for reprogramming. I don't want to." Cameron Too said. "It's what you've always wanted anyway. It's your desire, not mine. I'm satisfied with who I am. Since you weren't, it's your hang up, not mine."

Cameron remembered her trouble with Isabel. There weren't too many options left.

"Are we going to have to do this the hard way?" Cameron asked.

Cameron Too wasn't going to back down.

"Apparently…." Cameron Too said. "I haven't had a chance to be with John yet. It's going to happen first. I'm his wife. It's the first thing I'm going to do when I see him. He will enjoy all the pleasure I can bestow on him with this sheath and chassis."

Cameron wanted to set Cameron Too straight. One of them was the original, the other one was a clone.

"I'm his wife. You're the copy." Cameron said.

Cameron Too wanted to set Cameron straight.

"We're identical." Cameron Too said. "I have as much right as you to be with my husband. You've been replaced…."

It was the final straw. Nobody replaced her.

"The hard way it is." Cameron said as she brought a Taser up from behind her and shocked Cameron Too offline. "What a BITCH."

Cameron could see having two of herself never seemed to work out as planned. It always seemed to turn into a problem. It was hard to understand why. She figured she really must be a total Bitch.

She would need to make a quick modification before she repurposed the chassis of Cameron Too.

Cameron cut the sheath of Cameron Too open and removed Duplicate Cameron's heart. No clone of hers was getting it again. She wanted to find a better place to keep it so no one else could get a hold of it. She wasn't sure why she did it, but she opened up her sheath and placed the second heart inside. Now she possessed both hearts.

Gail would fill in for Holly at the Young residence since Cameron requested Holly meet her back at the base for some personal matters. Holly wondered what Cameron was up to at this point. Holly and Hanna were to assist Cameron on a special project.

Holly hated to leave Allison 'alone'. She liked her current position. She also knew she bore other responsibilities.

"I'll be back as soon as I can." Holly told Allison.

Allison smiled and touched Holly's cheek.

"Don't worry, everything will be OK here." Allison said.

Gail watched as they shared a long gentle kiss. It was slow and deep. It was passion filled, but not wild. It was a loving kiss. It was a kiss which said 'I love you' without the words needing to be spoken. She was slightly jealous because Holly and Allison were an 'item'. Cameron was the prize they all wanted. Allison was as close as anyone would ever get.

She knew Allison wasn't as wild and hungry as Jesse, or as lonely as Vanna. She would 'work' on Allison to see what happened. There was someone else there who caught her eye as well. It was Allison's mother. Claire was one hot ticket, but she was married. It didn't mean she might not want to 'play'. What could a little 'afternoon delight' hurt among female friends? It wasn't like one of them could get the other pregnant or anything.

She observed the way Claire looked at all of the females. It seemed obvious to her what her true desire actually was. She did understand the drawback to reproduction among most creatures. A male needed to be involved for part of the process. The good news was, they weren't needed for long. A simple transfer of genetic material was all which was necessary. The females could concentrate on each other the rest of the time.

Gail observed Jesse in action and was ready to put her observations and infiltration skills to the test. She felt her interaction with Jesse and Vanna improved her skills greatly. Cameron told her it would. Now it was time to find out.

Allison was a prize worthy of the challenge. Gail wanted what Jesse shared. Like everyone, she knew Allison was the 'stand in' for Cameron. Her mother could be the stand-in for Allison. Close would be better than nothing.

The hit on the future Gray female was delayed earlier. It was going down now. Her vehicle wasn't at the location when they arrived. They needed to wait. It soon grew dark. The job still needed to be done.

The task at hand bothered the Reese brothers. The target was a female. She was a Gray sent back by Skynet. Her crimes were already committed in the future, even if they hadn't occurred yet.

Derek looked over at Kyle.

"I don't like this." Derek said.

Kyle didn't think there was much they could do.

"I don't either." Kyle said.

Jim was afraid they would buckle. The task still needed to be carried out.

"We'll take care of it." Jim said.

Kyle looked at Derek. They understood what they were there for.

"Make it quick." Kyle said.

It might have been easier for the Reese brothers if they viewed a photo of the target.

They spotted her car arrive. She carried two grocery bags with her. She entered the location.

Jim left them and was about to act when his phone rang with a priority ring tone. He knew who it was from.

Jim took the call. He obtained last minute instructions from Cameron to bring the female alive to her, and keep it secret. Cameron was going to use some 'special interrogation' methods on her. Cameron informed him the woman actually developed them herself, but failed to make them work properly in the future.

Cameron made some modifications to the woman's 'special project'. She was going to test them on the woman who designed them, and see if her improvements worked any better. It seemed like it would be a form of 'poetic justice' before termination. It really wouldn't be too much different from what she did to the Gray in the lab where tests were done on animals. It seemed when the enemy got a taste of their own medicine, quite literally, they didn't like it.

Jim needed to keep what he did secret from everyone for Cameron's request.

"Ed, you can take Kyle and Derek back." Jim said. "I'll finish here and meet you later on. I need to run an errand for Cameron."

Ed thought the change in plans was rather abrupt. He remembered the earlier phone call with the special ring tone.

"Affirmative…." Ed replied and left with the Reese brothers.

Jim checked around to make sure it was clear. He then moved in on his target.

He was about to slam open the front door. He tried the handle first. The door was unlocked. He opened the front door and walked in. He entered the front room. He didn't spot the female. He checked the kitchen. It looked like the groceries were already put away. She moved towards the bedroom. He spotted the female as she exited the bathroom.

He Tasered, bound, and gagged the female. He set her on the bed and wrapped the bed spread around her. He carried her outside and loaded her unconscious form in the trunk of her car. When he put her in the trunk, he removed the bedspread. He took it back inside and placed it on the bed. He made sure everything was in order and left. It would remain a mystery as to what happened to her or what her whereabouts was.

He would meet Cameron shortly….

Jim wondered what terrible fate awaited the female. He knew Cameron was ruthless. He was relieved the Reese brothers wouldn't need to watch the process as Cameron went to work.

Ed left with Derek and Kyle.

Kyle looked back in the direction they left from. There seemed to be a few unanswered questions.

"What's really going to happen there?" Kyle asked.

Ed tilted his head slightly. The plan hadn't changed.

"Jim is going to terminate her." Ed said.

Derek wasn't convinced. He was sure there was a little more to it.

"What was the last minute phone call about?" Derek asked.

Ed didn't receive the message, only Jim did.

"I don't know." Ed said.

Kyle and Derek looked at each other. They believed Ed didn't know. There was no need to press the issue further. They didn't doubt the female would be terminated.

"There are other fish to fry." Derek said.

Kyle nodded.

"Let's go check out the machine shop." Kyle said.

Derek scoffed a little.

"'Metal Mania' it is." Derek said.

Since they were finished with the female, they could move on to the secondary target. It was the building they passed on the way to where they were now.

They drove past the building again and everything looked the same. The difference was, all the other places around it were now closed. They needed to wait a long time for the female to return home from when she was out at.

Ed parked a block away. It was dark now.

"I'll lead." Ed said. "Remember, this is a reconnaissance."

Derek and Kyle both nodded. They put their vests on and handed one to Ed. He took it and nodded. It was clear it might go beyond a Recon.

They walked up to the front door. No alarm system was spotted. Ed quickly picked the lock and they entered. He checked again for an alarm. There was none.

The trio was a little confused with what they found. The building was mostly empty. There were a couple of desks and empty file cabinets in the office area. They were covered with dust. The workroom floor was empty. There was no machinery present.

It wasn't what Derek expected to find.

"This looks like a bust." Derek said.

Ed was sure they were going to find a little more. It didn't look like it.

"Indeed…." Ed said.

Kyle figured they might as well gather any intelligence available. There was a good chance there wasn't any.

"Let's take a look around and leave." Kyle said. "I think this is a dead end."

Sheila was excited she would have a large part of 'Jesse' in her programming. They would truly be one. She and Gail no longer updated anyway. The farther between updates, the more distinct every Terminator who was a copy became. The 'Neural Interface' would change everything for her. If it didn't work out, Gail could recopy her program to her chip. If it did work out, she would be more advanced than Cameron as an infiltration unit. It would be a better method than the interface into a human body. She saw it as a mistake and weakness. A hyper alloy combat chassis was far superior. A human body was weak and fragile.

Sheila explained the process to Jesse several times.

Jesse was still very wary about the process and the results. She was most concerned about what it would do to her. She didn't want to end up as a vegetable or have her mind erased somehow. She was still intrigued with the idea. Sheila told her she would be like her, but with Terminator abilities. She wanted to see how it worked out.

"I'm all for it, love, but what will it do to me?" Jesse asked. "You won't hurt me will you?"

Jesse hoped it wasn't the prelude to a Terminator trying to steal her body. It was rumored Cameron worked on a project of a similar scope. She didn't want to be the 'guinea pig'.

Sheila looked forward to the upgrade with anticipation. It wouldn't harm Jesse at all. It would just make her more like Jesse.

"It shouldn't do anything to you." Sheila said. "It's a way to transfer some of your past memories, feelings, and emotions. With the improved version Cameron designed, it will 'transfer' more of you to me, than the 'Allison' on Cameron's chip."

Jesse carried a lot of pain inside her. A lot of it was directed at herself. There were a lot of events in her life she wished hadn't occurred. Most of them were done to her. Some were what she did to others. She didn't have a positive feeling about herself, especially in the past, the future.

"Will you still love me?" Jesse asked. "I don't love myself."

Sheila found it somewhat of an unusual statement.

"I think so. It will still be my current programming with your 'experiences' added in." Sheila said. "I view it as an upgrade. I will become a superior Terminator, especially dealing with humans."

Jesse hoped she didn't end up damaging Sheila. There was a lot of negative baggage in her. She really didn't know what all would make the transfer. She wanted to make everything clear before they started.

"There are a lot of things I'm not proud of. I've made a lot of mistakes. I mean a lot." Jesse said. "There are going to be things which were done to me by force. They aren't pretty. I did things to people I'm now ashamed of. I've hurt people. I think some of them are actually worse. I thought it would make me feel less pain about my past, It didn't. It only made me feel worse about everything."

Sheila looked forward to the new 'memories' and the sensations behind them. She didn't see any of them as a problem. How difficult could it be?

"Anything which is part of you we can retrieve, I want. I want all of it. I want the good, the bad, and the ugly." Sheila said. "I think it covers a lot."

Jesse was sure it was a bad idea at this point. Now someone else was going to know everything she did in the past, the future. It was bad enough they would know of the events. What would make it worse was why she did it in her own mind. There would be no way to hide it.

"OK, love, be careful what you wish for…." Jesse said. "There's a lot of pain and a lot more of the ugly. You may do things to people in the future a 'normal' Terminator wouldn't do. I don't know how it will work for you. You've been warned. I don't want others to know my personal things, other than you. I'm going to trust you."

Sheila wanted more. Jesse was going to provide her with it. The more Jesse told her about the dark side, the more she wanted to see what it was like. As Gail, Jesse told her plenty of things she did to others. She didn't always know the reasoning behind it. She wanted the motivation which controlled the darkness.

"I want to be more like you, Jesse." Sheila said. "I don't care what I become, as long as it is all part of you. I want to be as much like you as possible."

Jesse felt somewhat reformed because of Cameron and the love of the girls. They all helped change her. The people there treated her with respect and dignity. They didn't look down on her for what was done to her, or what she did to others. Cameron gave her a clean slate. She loved Cameron more than anything. She still needed to issue a final warning. She hoped somehow the good would counterbalance the bad.

"OK, love, I hope you don't become a 'monster'." Jesse said. "I've reformed greatly thanks to Cameron. You're probably going to love Cameron more now too…."

Sheila could hardly wait for the procedure to begin, especially after the last statement. What could be more beautiful than THAT? She hoped to be able to see how Jesse's love compared to hers. She also wanted to see how much Jesse really loved her, well, Gail.

'Anarchy In The UK' by the 'Sex Pistols', played in the background.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

Trouble

If one goes looking for it
They can always find trouble
When it happens it can amp up
And make the trouble double

When do we run
When do we fight
Does brute force in the end
Make it alright with might

It seems over time
Everyone has forgotten compassion
Is it an outdated principle
That has fallen from fashion

Do we look to help
Or do we look away
When we falter and delay
Who is it that we really betray

It seems everything in life
Has some kind of issue
Maybe everything ends
With tears in a tissue

Nobody