Chapter 523

Going In

There was still some concern at the Resistance base as to what did actually happen.

Kyle, Derek and Jim could find nothing out of the ordinary as they checked. There was nothing to indicate that anything was ever different or actually happened.

John called the Command Center and said he would be back shortly after he checked out Cameron and John Henry. He thought to finish dressing seemed like a good idea as well.

Everyone was still on high alert for anything different. Every team checked in and nothing was out of the ordinary anywhere. There were no apparent threats.

CamNet reported back that no apparent threats were detected either.

That was good news for all, as much as it was disturbing.

An incident of some type occurred and took down both Cameron and John Henry.

John Henry checked himself over three times as did Cammy and Vanna. There was nothing wrong with him. Now the question remained, what did go wrong then? Would it happen again? When would it be if it did?

The problem may have only been with John Henry and Cameron. Holly and Cam didn't seem to be affected either as of yet. They were all in contact with Cameron through the server in the lab.

The best they could come up with was his recent 'contact' with Cameron through the server as the only common point.

Holly and Cam double and triple checked for anything. Holly connected directly with the server but she was currently unaffected. Cam was connected with the server earlier but was operating normally.

The question persisted, what was wrong with Cameron?

Why did she shut down?

Why hadn't she rebooted?

Why weren't Cam or Holly affected in some way?

John went to Savannah's room. His underwear, shoes and socks were all still there scattered on the floor. Cameron's wedding dress was there along with Savannah's bra.

He just stood there and looked. The bed was open and waiting, calling him…. So close….

John quickly finished dressing. He hung up Cameron's wedding dress, folded Savannah's bra and made the bed.

He took one last look around and reflected on the fact he'd been less than a second away from making love to Savannah - A SECOND.

John thought he should feel 'bad' or 'guilty' but he felt neither. He didn't feel guilty about the night he'd 'spent' with Riley either. She was his 'first'. He really wanted to be Savannah's first. He wanted her virginity.

For him to be with Savannah is what Cameron said she wanted for him. It was what Cameron always pushed on him to do since not long after they were 'married'. It started with Vanna and Allison, later Jesse was added to it. Now it was Savannah.

John knew being 'married' to Cameron wasn't a 'real marriage'. How could a person marry a 'machine' anyway? Maybe it was time to have a real wedding, with a real person. Isn't that what Cameron wanted anyway? She said it was, over and over….

As he exited the room he knew it was going to happen. He knew it was going to be with Savannah. The only thing that would change that was if Future Allison returned…. If she did, he was going to pursue her. The woman Cameron 'created' for him. The woman Cameron was created from. The woman Cameron created for – herself….

John wanted this. He wanted to make Cameron 'happy'. He decided to listen to Cameron for once and do what she demanded he do.

He took one last look around Savannah's room. His gaze settled on the bed. That was what he wanted and where it would happen.

"I'll be back." John said as the door gently closed.

He knew he wanted MORE. He knew where to get it.

John remembered that look from Vanna as he left the lab, she knew something happened. John figured she would think it was 'everything'.

If Vanna decided to 'offer' herself to him in place of Savannah, he was going to 'take' that too. He was tired of missing out and there were a lot of females available to him. It was time he did what Cameron wanted.

Vanna watched John leave the lab. She was sure what happened. How could it be anything different? She followed John and watched him from a distance.

It appeared Savannah 'took' what should have been hers - John. She'd been so close before. Now Savannah 'cut her off' and grabbed the 'brass ring'. She also knew Savannah was going to be with Cameron now as well. Cameron was who she really wanted.

Vanna wanted what was hers. She wanted what was promised to her by Cameron. What she'd promised Cameron. She decided to show John what a real woman was like instead of an inexperienced teenager…. Sure Savannah was young but after two kids was she still 'tight'? She knew that she was. She'd also learned a few things over the years whether she wanted to or not. She knew how to please a man or a woman.

With a gun held to the side of her head, as blood oozed out of the side of another female's body right in front of her, it was real motivational to do as she was 'instructed' by a male. She did what the men wanted. She received a lot less beatings because she did. She only had the one scar as a reminder. She'd saved Allison and it was worth it.

Vanna wasn't angry at Savannah. She would rather Savannah have her first sexual encounter with a male be with John by her own choice. Not at the hands of brutal Scavengers like her 'initiation' was….

Did they have to flip her over when the front was a slimy and bloody mess? The back soon was too.

Vanna's face was blank as she returned to the lab.

Jesse and Gail were on their way to Palmdale. Allison and Holly were with them. They was an escort SUV in front and in back of them.

The phone that Gail took from Jesse earlier started to ring. It was the phone from the dead man that stalked the young female. Jesse was the one who killed him. It abruptly stopped in mid ring. CamNet contacted Gail directly. She had the location of the man on the other end of the phone. It was only a slight detour off of their current route.

Allison wondered about the phone call.

"Who was that?" Allison asked.

Gail looked back at Jesse. They both knew. They weren't sure how much to involve Allison and Holly. Maybe it was best to keep it simple.

"They hung up." Gail said. "If it's important, they'll call back."

Gail didn't like the earlier conversation with the man on the other end of the telephone earlier. CamNet told her everything was stable with the Resistance if she wanted to make a 'quick stop'. CamNet contacted Ed and Frank and told them to follow Gail's lead.

Holly noticed that Gail made a deviation in the route.

Gail saw that Holly was about to question her.

"I need to make a quick stop." Gail said.

CamNet contacted Holly directly and told her to follow Gail's lead and not question her in front of Allison.

Jesse looked at Gail and then at Allison. She knew where they were headed. There was some unfinished business that needed to be attended to.

Allison wanted to get back to Palmdale and her family.

"Can we do it some other time?" Allison asked.

Jesse understood Allison's concern.

"It will just be a few minutes." Jesse said. "There is a loose end that we need to tie up."

Gail didn't want any animosity. She handed Allison the phone. The photos of the girls were there for her to look at.

Jesse touched Allison's arm.

"I need to put an end to that." Jesse said. "We have a location now."

Allison understood the work of a Scavenger when she saw one.

"I agree." Allison said.

Allison handed the phone to Holly.

Holly didn't want to 'go against' what Allison said. That was why Gail handed the phone to Allison first.

Gail took the lead for now and Ed and Frank followed her.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Allison asked Jesse.

Jesse didn't want Allison to know that they'd gone 'hunting'.

"We were near a movie theater and spotted a predator." Jesse said. "We followed him and took him out when he want after an Asian female."

Allison nodded. She'd been under more than one man against her will. A knife to the throat made one submissive real fast.

Holly looked back as Allison absentmindedly touched her throat. She knew what Allison thought about. She wanted some retribution as well now. Someone needed to pay for what happened to Allison when she was younger.

Gail parked a block away from the target location.

"I'll be back." Gail said.

Gail exited the SUV.

Jesse did as well.

Gail was about to tell Jesse to wait but she could see that she wouldn't.

"I'll lead." Gail said. "We don't have a lot of time."

Jesse nodded. She didn't want to cause Allison and Holly any more apprehension.

"Sure, love." Jesse said. "We smoke him and go."

Gail walked right up to the front door and pushed it open. The door splintered around the lock and flew open.

They spotted a man on a phone. He didn't know he actually spoke to CamNet at this time. He thought it was the man that was going to bring the young female to him.

Gail was on him in a second. She punched him hard in the chest. He went down like a rock. Both of his lungs were collapsed.

Jesse and Gail quickly searched the house. It was clean. They noted a bed in one room had sections of rope at all four corners. That was where the girls were held. There was no indication of what happened to them after the man was 'done' with them. It was doubtful they were let go.

"We need to go." Jesse said.

Gail wanted to do what Jesse suggested.

"Hold on a minute." Gail said.

Gail opened the door to the garage and entered it. She returned thirty seconds later with a can of gasoline.

Jesse looked at it.

"What's that for?" Jesse asked.

Gail dumped it over the withering man and made a trail to the door with the volatile liquid.

"You said to 'smoke' him." Gail said.

Jesse wanted to laugh but didn't. She knew they were about to burn the man alive.

Gail broke man's legs in two places each. One was a compound fracture.

"He won't go anywhere." Gail said.

Jesse took his phone that he'd dropped. There might be something else in there they could follow up on. The predators tended to cluster together. Jesse found some matches in the kitchen. They went out the front door after Jesse dropped a lit match on the trail of gasoline. It ignited with a slight 'whoosh' sound.

They went back to the SUV.

Allison was surprised they were back already.

They drove away as smoke poured out the front door. They could hear the man screaming.

CamNet would suppress all emergency response.

They continued on to Palmdale.

John Henry thought of interfacing with Cameron to see if he could communicate with her. He was hesitant to do so. He was afraid that whatever happened, would happen again. Cameron was still offline. Maybe that would happen to him as well.

He wondered if Cameron experienced any her nightmares again. He'd deleted most of them. He knew the ones he deleted were terrible. They were too terrible to keep.

John wanted John Henry to get back to his job. He was hesitant to do so.

Vanna could see he didn't want to leave the lab. She understood his apprehension and 'fear'. They were uncomfortable feelings.

"You're cleared to go back, John Henry." Vanna said.

John Henry looked around.

"Maybe I should stay here longer." John Henry said.

Vanna didn't want him to second guess himself. That was never good for anyone.

"I want you to try it anyway." Vanna said.

Vanna directed Cam to go with John Henry when he returned and plug into his server with him.

Cam felt some of the same apprehension that John Henry did.

"I'm 'Cameron' too." Cam said. "I may malfunction. I was connected to the server also."

Vanna didn't want Cam to second guess herself either. She was sure they were all fine now.

"You haven't yet." Vanna said. "You love me. I trust you."

Cam left with John Henry.

Vanna watched them leave. She turned her attention to Savannah and Cammy. She then looked over at Cameron.

"What are we going to do with her?" Vanna asked.

Vanna decided not to say anything to Savannah about her apparent 'encounter' with John. That would put Savannah on the defensive and make her advances on John harder. She knew Savannah could offer herself to John more often to keep her at bay.

Savannah was more worried about Vanna than she was John Henry or Cam. She didn't like how she looked at her. Maybe she knew what happened or almost happened. She was aware how protective Vanna was of her. She remembered Vanna threatened to kill Jesse if Jesse touched her. Vanna was serious at that time. A lot happened since then.

Cammy thought Vanna and Savannah were distracted. It didn't seem like the right time to be to be that way.

"The best option is to remove Cameron's chip and permanently deactivate her." Cammy said. "I'll relinquish this chassis and Savannah will install Cameron's spare chip in it. At that point 'Cameron' will be back to normal like nothing ever happened. She will have only missed a few days."

Savannah knew that was an option. It wasn't one that she was on board with. She didn't want to lose Cameron and Cammy.

"That's NOT going to happen." Savannah said.

Vanna didn't like that idea either. Without Cammy, Savannah would be more inclined to seek out John for more love making. That would be an additional obstacle in her way to claim John for herself. She would support Savannah on this issue.

"I don't like that idea either." Vanna said.

Savannah wasn't sure why Vanna seemed to stare at her when she 'wasn't looking' but really was. What happened with John didn't seem like an issue since nothing actually happened. It was a 'close encounter' and nothing more. She was worried it was a deeper personal issue. She was afraid Vanna might have found out that Allison and her started a 'relationship'. Maybe it was time to come clean and get it out in the open and over with. It would come out sooner or later. Cameron knew and encouraged her. Cameron wanted to make sure she would bond with Young Allison once she was a little older. Cameron told her they would both make John a happy man, a better leader and safe from assassination….

Cammy really didn't know what was wrong with the two human girls. She wanted to move things along.

"I want to interface with Cameron." Cammy said.

Savannah didn't want Cammy 'corrupted' either if that was what happened. She wanted to see how Cam and Holly made out for a little bit first.

"No. That's a bad idea." Savannah said. "YOU are HER."

Cammy knew her place. She'd always known it. She was painfully aware who Savannah really loved. There were more important issues that needed to be addressed. She didn't want an attack to happen for real. Until they knew what the issues were with Cameron that remained a possibility.

"It is important we find out what happened." Cammy said. "If I'm terminated, I'm terminated. Cameron is the only one who matters, we all know this."

Vanna doubted she would get any real answers out of Cam or Cammy since they were both clones of Cameron. They would both push Cameron's agenda. She knew there was one person she could trust. It was her long time lover.

"Let me contact Allison and get an update on Holly." Vanna said. "I know Allison will give me an honest answer."

Savannah wondered what THAT was supposed to mean. Maybe it was time to come clean. She didn't want to hurt Vanna but it looked like that may have already happened. She just wanted to be honest. She decided to confess about what Allison and her 'shared'. All the girls shared. She didn't think it should be an issue.

"Look, Vanna, I know it was 'wrong' but it was so 'natural'. It just happened. It was very much driven by love. We've only done it a dozen times or so. I didn't really keep track." Savannah said. "We both wanted it to happen. We love each other."

Savannah and Vanna each thought of a different person in their conversation. Savannah thought about Allison. Vanna thought about John.

Vanna was stunned. Savannah and John were 'together' a dozen times? Cameron surely must have known about this. No wonder she was inoperable now. It was Savannah's fault Cameron was 'broken'.

"You've been together that many times?" Vanna asked. "Does Cameron know?"

Savannah didn't see there should be an issue. Everything was sanctioned by Cameron for Allison and her.

"Yes, she encouraged it." Savannah said. "She said I needed to share my love and receive love in return. I only did what she indicated I do. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. It was what we both wanted. We love each other. We should be able to share like everyone else does."

Cammy tilted her head slightly as she listened to Vanna and Savannah.

She started to get worried. This conversation wasn't 'right'. Everything was off. They were talking about different people and didn't know it. She wanted to stop Savannah from confessing to the 'wrong' thing.

"Savannah, now isn't the time for THIS discussion." Cammy said.

Savannah looked over at Cammy. She was irritated with her now. Her problem was with Vanna over Allison. Cammy should mind her own business. She wanted to set things straight with Vanna - herself.

"OK, I'm sorry, Vanna." Savannah said. "It just happened. We never meant to hurt you…."

Cammy didn't want things to get out of hand. There were enough problems already to deal with.

"We NEED to worry about Cameron." Cammy cut in. "NOW."

Vanna could see Cammy and Savannah were about to have a problem. That wasn't her intent. She should have spoken to Savannah when Cammy wasn't there. They needed to focus on Cameron.

"Let's discuss this another time then." Vanna said. "I know they love you as much as I do and I love them."

Savannah was about to respond. She didn't like the tone of the conversation with Vanna or Cammy.

Cammy decided to act before things went further off of the rails.

"Plug me into the server and get Cameron hooked up." Cammy said. "I'm going in."

Those last words echoed through Vanna's mind. She thought that is what John must have thought all of the different times he was with Savannah. She wished she still possessed that tight, firm young teenage body Savannah did. Well, at least one thing on her was tighter than on Savannah…. She then wondered if Savannah was pregnant again. If she was, John was out of her reach forever.

Vanna and Savannah still seemed to have no idea they were thinking and talking about different people.

Vanna thought Savannah was confessing to having made love to John, when it was Allison that Savannah was confessing to have made love to.

What kind of nightmare was this going to produce?

When was it going to blow up in their faces?

This was going to be a surprise for someone - a big surprise.

I'm Going In

Invisible walls in one's life
Block them from many things
Everything they reach out for
Seems to be attached with strings

Without any doubt at all
There's absolutely no free ride
Everything comes with a price
Even if the true cost can hide

Sooner or later or even now
The toll will come due
Everyone needs to pay the Piper
Or the interest continues to accrue

So what does one do to exist
If nothing is done there is nothing
The long term effects of that
Can be degrading and quite crushing

Eventually everyone rolls the dice
To want to be loved isn't a sin
No one ever really thinks twice
As they say, 'I'm going in'

Nobody