Chapter 298

Pick One

Bob led a team to check out the HK drone. They conducted an ongoing stakeout at the area since the HK drone landed. No one showed up for it. Cameron wanted to go on the mission. Since John destroyed the drone, she went elsewhere.

He would have liked her to come along on the mission. He knew she needed to keep her head in the game to stay proficient. The more mission oriented she remained, the less she seemed to dwell on her personal issues. He didn't like to see her suffer needlessly. Maybe he should have tried a little harder to have her join them.

The HK drone was totaled. The parts recovered were not Skynet grade in any way. It was a titanium wannabe. No Coltan was found in the wreckage. The chip was destroyed. There wasn't much to recover. The implication still remained. The HK drone came from somewhere, and from somebody. Someone knew they would be where they were and tried to draw them out.

He took it personally. Jim and him were the ones on the ground when they took down the future Gray. If the HK drone would have attacked, they would have been the recipients of its aggression. They still didn't know what the intentions of the HK drone were.

Bob called John and made a report about what they found out. Now it was time for the HK drones disposition. There were several options open to them.

"Do you want us to bring it back for further review?" Bob asked.

John thought it sounded like a bad idea. Since it was booby trapped, there could be other hidden surprises as well. There was no need to chance it, or risk anyone else. He wanted it as far away from the Resistance base as possible. Maybe they could use the wreckage to their advantage for something else.

"No. Take it to the desert and use Thermite on it." John said. "They may have some hidden tracker on it and try to use it to pinpoint our location. As far as we know, the owners are surveilling it too. We don't know what we're up against. In fact, take it to the desert and set up an ambush for a few days to see if they think we have it at our 'secret base' and come for it."

Bob was aware there were plenty of old mines and abandoned structures in the California deserts. A mock base would be easy to set up. They could still be attacked.

"What if they send a strike force?" Bob asked.

John wanted to use some trickery of their own. Plus he didn't want anyone to take any chances. He wouldn't allow any of Cameron's reckless behavior on anyone's part. If they were going to play a game, they would play it on their terms.

"Booby trap it. Don't engage them unless you have the upper hand. Stay hidden and we'll try to follow them." John said. "I want to make it clear to you, we're not losing anyone, PERIOD."

Bob wanted to have a surprise or two of his own. There were already a few things which were set up and available.

"We'll take the truck with our drone and have it within range for a quicker response if we need it." Bob said. "They could have another HK drone with them."

John liked the idea. He would send additional assistance during the night. He wanted to be able to hit harder than the enemy. They didn't know if they would face them or not. They didn't know what they would face if they did.

"I'll have John Henry send a second drone tonight as well." John said. "Do you need additional help?"

Bob figured in an unknown situation like this, some extra assistance would be beneficial.

"Sometimes it's nice to have help." Bob asked. "Do we know how many Terminators Cameron has?"

Cameron informed John about a new policy she enacted. He wasn't totally on board with it in regards to the female Terminators. He didn't see why they couldn't remain part of operations. He was just with Sheila and Hanna on the operation where they damaged the HK drone. He briefly wondered if it had anything with his 'inspection' of Sheila sheath when she removed the shrapnel from her protective vest. He wasn't going to ask.

"No. I have no idea." John said. "Cameron has removed all the females from combat duty except herself. It includes all the Metal girls as well."

It was news to Bob. He felt it was going to leave them short handed. There must be something in the works.

"It will definitely put a dent in our operation." Bob said. "What's she planning?"

It was the million dollar question. Nobody knew the answer.

"I'm more afraid of what she may have already done…." John said.

John was concerned now since Cameron was with him more in the last few weeks, than she was in the last few months. Cameron went out of her way to pleasure him until he was unable to be pleasured any more each time. He began to wonder if she was 'milking the cow'.

He didn't want to say anything to her about it. If he did, she might stop coming around. If nothing else, she would remind him there were plenty of other females available, including both the human girls and the Metal girls. He already heard it enough times. He didn't need to hear it again.

Cameron needed to take care of some housekeeping and staffing issues. She wanted to deal with Holly first. She thought it would be better to do it in person.

She left the Resistance base behind. She was very upset with her earlier interaction with John. She debated with herself whether she wanted to take the 14 Freeway, Sierra Highway, or Soledad Canyon Road. The 14 Freeway would get her there the quickest, but it wasn't really much quicker than Sierra Highway. Soledad Canyon was the most remote of the three she could take. There were other ways she could go if she went north out of Newhall on Bouquet Canyon Road. It would take her by the Bouquet Reservoir if she did. If she saw any future Scavenger activity along the way there, she was going to stop and deal with it.

She decided to take the combined route of Sierra Highway, with the middle section through Soledad Canyon Road, and reconnect with Sierra Highway again. It paralleled the railroad tracks for some of the route. She always liked to see a large machine do its duty. It was the only thing it needed to do. It seemed to her life would be much simpler if it was all which was involved.

The trip proved uneventful to Palmdale. She took the cross street off of Sierra Highway and headed for the Young residence. She was a little surprised to see Holly come out to greet her. It usually indicated there was going to be some type of confrontation.

Cameron parked. She exchanged pleasantries with Holly. She figured the best thing to do was get right down to business.

"Do you want Ally, Hanna, or Sheila as your reinforcement?" Cameron asked.

Holly saw it as more 'competition', not as additional help. She would try to dodge the issue. She didn't want to refuse the help outright. She hoped to avoid it being assigned anyway.

"I don't think I need any of them." Holly said. "Everything is under control with the current Detail setup we have."

Cameron started to get upset. She didn't want to do the usual 'dance'. She did however understand Holly's 'fear'. It was the fear of rejection and replacement. She, well, Duplicate Cameron, previously shared her files with Holly about how they made her feel. Now it appeared Holly was afraid she was going to have to feel them herself, for real. She also wanted to stress what the purpose was and what actually mattered.

"Get over your personal feelings and trust your love." Cameron said. "It's about protecting Allison as well as the baby. It's about the future and our sole function as Terminators. Any of us can be terminated in combat fulfilling our duty, it happens. As long as John is protected with Allison and the girls, it's the only thing which matters. I know you understand. When Allison is needed at John's side, your main function will be to protect Young Allison and Summer for John in the future."

Cameron didn't have to say she would protect Allison and her child at that point herself. They both knew it.

Holly was always soothed by the prospect of Young Allison growing and being able to replace Allison in her 'heart'. She didn't want to seem overly excited about it in front of Cameron. If she lost Allison to Cameron and John, she wasn't going to lose Young Allison. The prospect of Summer was just as enthralling.

"You're right." Holly said. "I'm sorry."

Cameron wanted to make things as painless as possible for Holly.

"Look, I want everyone to be comfortable and happy. Which one of the Metal girls do you feel less 'threatened' by?" Cameron asked. "I'm giving you the first pick with who's available."

Holly couldn't see a real advantage to any of them. One choice was as bad as the others. The Metal girls were all extremely promiscuous. It would all come down to a 'lesser of evils'.

"Sheila is too HOT. Hanna will remind her of Vanna." Holly said. "Allison may wish to 'experiment' with either of those Metal girls. Vanna has, and I'm sure Allison will do the same if the opportunity presents itself. Allison is very sexual. I've scanned her when we're out. I see and feel her reactions to some males, and most females around her at those times. It's very disturbing. I know she is thinking of sexual encounters with them."

Cameron figured Ally it was. She would have thought Holly would pick Hanna. It seemed best not to ask about it or make her second guess.

"I'll bring Ally with me when I return." Cameron said. "I have a few things I want to take care of."

Holly was even more afraid Allison would see Ally as 'Cameron' and try something…. Ally liked to play 'Cameron' already. She was quite proficient at it too. There was a better choice. She wanted a different option.

"No, please send Hanna instead." Holly said.

Cameron thought about Holly's selection. It was who she thought she'd select. She knew what Holly 'feared'.

Holly wanted to know a little more about what else was going on.

"What about Cam?" Holly asked. "What's her story?"

Cameron believed there were a few established facts.

"Cam belongs to Vanna. Gail belongs to Jesse. You belong to Allison. I belong to John." Cameron said. "I will see if Vanna wants Sheila or Ally as her 'second'."

Holly could see they were short one 'second'.

"Who's your 'second'?" Holly asked.

Cameron understood the 'Natural Order', even if no one else did."

"I'm the 'second'. Allison and Vanna are the first. Accept it, I have." Cameron said. "The 'Natural Order' will always win. It must. It is imperative for John's survival."

Holly comprehended the reasoning. She didn't understand the method. She believed the decision should belong to someone else. She might not like it, but she would go along with it.

"I understand. I think Vanna will want Sheila." Holly said. "Why are you letting the choice be mine instead of Allison's?"

Cameron was well aware how things which occurred made her feel. Many of them she didn't have any control over. She didn't want Holly to feel like her.

"I chose this method because I care about you, Holly. I know you're 'sensitive' and shy in 'personal matters'." Cameron said. "I want to cause you the least amount of grief possible. There are certain things which need to be done and taken care of."

Holly really appreciated Cameron looked after her best interests. She felt bad about her earlier abrasiveness towards Cameron. It was wrong for her to do.

"Thank you." Holly said. "I'm sorry if I was rude."

Cameron wanted to provide a surprise for Claire.

"I'll bring Cam and Ally by to see Claire when I bring Hanna." Cameron said.

Holly watched Vanna and Claire 'interact' before. It was clear they wanted to share with each other. She was unsure if they actually did or not. She figured Hanna would end up doing the same thing and probably more. It would be better for her if Hanna looked in the receptive direction of Claire, rather than at HER Allison. In fact, she would attempt to steer both of them in the same direction. Cameron wasn't the only one who could manipulate people.

"I'll trust your judgment as always, Cameron." Holly said.

Cameron really wanted Cam to distract the others so she could get her DNA samples unobserved. Cam shared her program as well as Ally's and would understand Cameron's motives better. It was doubtful she would challenge her.

"Thank you, I hope I know what I'm doing myself…." Cameron said.

Cameron really wished she did. She was about to take some big steps. She just wasn't sure they were in the right direction. She decided not to enter the Young residence at this time. She would wait so she arrived with the rest of the Metal girls. She made the trip back to the Valley. She took the 14 Freeway on her return. Things went much better than she anticipated.

It did make her wonder why Holly changed her mind from Ally to Hanna. It didn't take her long to realize it was because of Claire. Claire was likely to be more receptive of a sexual encounter with Hanna than she would be with Ally, since Ally looked like her daughters. She wasn't opposed to the idea. She wanted Claire to remain happy, and available. A Metal girl could make anyone happy. It didn't matter if they were a male or a female.

Allison listened to the conversation from one of the windows in the house. It sounded like good news to her. She would be able to get a 'crack' at Hanna. It would be nice to see a beautiful 'pink butterfly' again. It would be just like being with Vanna, without the hassle and tension. Maybe it was resentment on both of their parts.

Maybe it was all a lot of grief and hurt about nothing. Things just happen sometimes. If the Metal girls weren't so handy, Vanna and her would need to seek out each other.

Allison thought she better inform her mother there were about to be 'four of her' real soon, unless they counted Young Allison also….

It would be sort of a mind trip to see all of them together.

Cameron thought about the damaged HK drone. She was still disgusted by the way John dealt with the issue. She wanted to examine the wreckage of the HK drone. John defied her again and destroyed it. She continued on back to the base. She collected her group and headed to Palmdale.

She ran her own show now. It was John's fault, not her fault, he was left out of the decisions which needed to be made. He would probably try and disrupt them too if he knew about them. The sooner everyone understood she knew best, the simpler it would be for everyone. It just didn't seem like too hard of a concept for others to grasp, yet it was.

Cameron was on the way to Palmdale with Cam, Ally, and Hanna. She knew what she wanted to do, but she wasn't really sure of the endgame.

Cam wanted to do something productive.

"Are there any targets we can strike on the way to Palmdale?" Cam asked.

Cameron looked back at Cam. She looked at Ally and Hanna too. She didn't want to arrive in Palmdale with any of the girls shot up if something went wrong.

"Maybe we can hit something on the way back." Cameron said.

Hanna and Ally knew a few targets they could take down. There was a whole list of them which weren't Resistance related.

"There are a few on the way there too." Ally said.

Cameron was a little surprised to hear Ally speak up. She was normally less than ambitious. She usually went with the flow. She wondered if there was something important she may have missed which needed their attention.

"What is it?" Cameron asked.

Ally only listed two of the most flagrant violators.

"One is a drug runner, and the other is a pimp." Ally said.

The drug runner sounded mundane to Cameron. They were a dime a dozen. Sex trafficking always bothered her. They both created victims. The drug users were normally victims by choice, at least when they started. She viewed the girls in the sex trade it's the real victims. Most of them were addicted to narcotics. The people responsible needed to answer for their actions.

"What's the story on the pimp?" Cameron asked.

Hanna was bothered by who the targets were. It was more than just the 'Vanna' in her.

"They target schoolgirls." Hanna said.

Cameron didn't think it was new. Schoolgirls made easy 'marks'. Many were ready to rebel against their parents, which was usually only one of them in the household. The prospect of a little cash, and being told they look 'pretty', went a long way into recruiting them.

"What's the catch?" Cameron asked.

Ally didn't like the person behind it. They were in a position of power or authority.

"The pimp is a female social worker." Ally said.

The revelation got Cameron's attention. It was exactly the kind of person who ended up working with Skynet. They always looked for the easy way.

"Is she a future Gray?" Cameron asked.

Cam didn't think it should matter. She already heard enough to make her determination.

"The nature of her crimes is punishable by death." Cam said.

Cameron looked over at Cam. It was what she thought to herself. She needed to remember Cam ran her program, even if it was blended.

"What are her crimes specifically?" Cameron asked.

Sheila, Ally, and Hanna usually worked out of Cameron's base. CamNet gave them targets. Many were outside the scope of Resistance operations which was why Cameron established her own base. There were some things which needed to be taken care of. She didn't want to taint the Resistance or John.

"As a social worker she has access to many homes of dependent mothers who need assistance." Ally said. "She selects homes where the mother is easily reintroduced to drugs through a third party. The targets are all homes with one or more daughters. The mother is coerced into having her daughters 'work' for an additional third party to keep the mother supplied with her 'medicine', and the threat of losing her girls as a drug addict. Any of the daughters who resist their new livelihood are soon hooked on drugs themselves. They are the ones who end up having it the worst. They will soon do anything for their fix."

Cameron wondered why this operation wasn't taken down already. It sounded like something which should have been dealt with earlier. It was well established with legs.

"How is she still operating?" Cameron asked.

Hanna wanted to act earlier. She was told to wait.

"CamNet wanted to identify all of the players." Hanna said.

Cameron heard enough. It was too much actually. She believed it needed corrective action. She contacted CamNet and ordered her to dispatch all of her personnel to take down all the known players in the endeavor immediately. She wanted to deal with the social worker personally.

CamNet gave Cameron the information on the social worker and where they were at right now.

Cameron pulled off the freeway. She needed to backtrack. The social worker was out in the field right now. They pulled up two houses away from her car. There was a suspicious van down the block which they passed. They recognized it for what it was.

The social worker exited the house with a giant smile on her face. She got into her car.

Cameron watched her pull away from the house. Even before she was three houses away, the suspicious van pulled up.

The mother stood at her front door with her two daughters. She was supposed to take them out to the van. They all looked upset.

"Take care of this." Cameron said to Ally and Hanna.

They exited the SUV. Cameron took off after the social worker.

They saw the mother hesitate at the front door.

Ally and Hanna approached the van on the sidewalk.

There were two men in the van. They looked towards the house.

"Let's get them loaded." The first man said. "We'll take care of them on the way there."

Both of the men gave off an evil laugh. It was clear what they intended to do before the girls arrived at the processing facility.

Hanna walked up to the mother.

"Stay inside." Hanna said to the mother as she handed her a business card. "Call the number. You will receive help for free. You need to think of your daughters."

Hanna hurried to join Ally on the sidewalk next to the van.

The two men were confronted by Ally and Hanna. They looked very angry at the intrusion.

"We'll go with you instead." Ally said.

Ally climbed in the back of the van. It was a 'meat wagon'. There were restraints bolted to the floor.

The men looked at the house still. They weren't sure what to do.

Hanna pushed one man towards the van. Ally pulled him inside. She promptly snapped his neck.

The other man turned to face Hanna. She punched him in the neck. There was a loud 'crunch' sound and his neck swung over at a crazy angle. She tossed him over to Ally and closed the side door. She moved to the driver's side and got in. The van was still running. They drove away.

The mother looked back as soon as the door to the house closed and the van drove away. She looked at her two daughters and cried. She couldn't believe what she almost allowed to happen. She knew she needed help. She called the number on the card the pretty redhead handed her.

Cameron and Cam went after the social worker.

They caught her at the first red light. As soon as the light turned green Cameron 'bumped' into the back of the social worker's car with enough force to be felt but not do any real damage. The social worker pulled over. Cameron pulled up behind her.

The social worker got out to look at the damage. Cameron apologized for 'bumping' her. She went to look with her. Cam moved around the side and opened up the truck from the release inside the car.

The trunk lid popped open. The woman looked a little surprised. She was in for an even bigger surprise.

Cameron picked the woman up and stuffed her inside the trunk.

"You're lucky I'm short on time." Cameron said.

The social worker still wasn't able to process what was going on yet. Her world went black.

Cameron snapped her neck and closed the trunk.

Cam was now inside the social workers car. She pulled away from the curb. The van with Hanna and Ally caught up and pulled behind it. Cameron followed in the SUV.

They took one of the canyon roads. They stopped near the guardrail on a small cliff. It was about seventy five feet down.

They moved the social worker back into the driver's seat and buckled her in. Ally and Hanna moved both of the men to the front seat in the van. Cameron got in the van and pushed the car through the wooden guard rail. It disappeared over the side. She pulled one of the men into the driver's seat as she stepped out of the slow moving van. It followed the car over the side.

They all got back in the SUV and drove away.

"Next time I want action right away." Cameron said. "What if those females were any of our girls? You all know what would have happened if we didn't arrive when we did. Think of what those girls would be going through right now."

CamNet agreed to act sooner going forward once Cameron put everything into perspective.

Cameron's analogy left all of them with an uneasy feeling. The rest of the ride to the Young residence was in silence.

When they arrived at the Young residence, Cameron realized she didn't remember most of the drive there after the 'encounter' and the incident. She hadn't run into anyone so it was a good thing. Life moved forwards not backwards.

The four Metal girls exited the SUV.

Allison looked out the window. She opened the front door and stood back a ways.

Cameron walked in the door followed by Hanna, Ally, and Cam. She went and stood by Allison.

Claire watched the procession walk in. It was sort of a mind trip. Young Allison stood next to her. She looked over at Allison. She remembered when Allison told her about how many 'versions' of her there were.

"Oh my." Claire said. "Allison, did you say there are at least eleven of you?"

Allison shrugged her shoulders. There wasn't much she could do about it.

"Welcome to the future, Mom." Allison said.

Cameron made the introductions. Young Allison watched them. She was intrigued and went off to the side to look at all the 'Allisons'. She knew it was what she was going to look like. She found it very satisfying. The only problem was it was still a few years away.

Claire looked around and wondered where Young Allison went.

"Allison." Claire said. "Come out and say, hello."

Young Allison came over and looked at the group of females. She then went straight to Cameron and took her hand. She did much the same thing as Savannah did earlier. She looked each of them in the face as she held Cameron's hand. She laid claim to what would be 'hers' one day. She was well 'conditioned' in her role, function, and 'duties' as part of the "Natural Order'. It was like an 'arranged marriage' in some cultures in reality.

"That hurts my feelings." Allison said.

Allison and Claire both hoped Young Allison would go to them.

"Not as bad as it hurts mine." Claire said. "I guess Cameron IS the future."

When Summer woke up and they brought her out, she as well went straight to Cameron….

The reality of the situation wasn't lost on Claire.

"Everyone sacrifices for John Connor." Claire said.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

Pick One

The desire is to have many
Reality dictates otherwise
Which seems to be the root
For frustration and cries

Sometimes there must be a choice
It's not always easy to make
It soon becomes evident that some
Are little more than a fake

Often moments of greed
Blind what is the real goal
Events that soon follow
Don't leave anyone whole

Should one give or take
Few are on the same page
It seems the end result
Are grief, anger and rage

Some set out with no direction
They want to play games and have fun
Love finds a way to creep in
Forcing them to only pick one

Nobody