Chapter 567

Even Better

The tracker Cammy placed inside of the truckload of HK Tracks she sabotaged showed it was stopped again. The truck stopped twice on its journey. Both times it was for two days. Where it currently was now was the third time.

Cameron figured they probably checked to see if anyone tracked it or followed it. It didn't appear they found the tracker. It was possible they did and were about to set up an ambush.

She was alerted by CamNet the truckload of HK Tracks arrived at a fixed destination the last time. It was different from the other stops. It was at a structure in a secluded area. It might be the final destination or another stop. Since the latest stop was inside a structure, it called for some additional on the ground investigation. There might be other things there of interest.

After the assembly factory was destroyed, the Skynet wannabe wasn't taking any chances. Cameron sent two of her Terminators to shadow the rig. One was always in front of it on any divergent route it might take. They would be less likely to be spotted miles in front of the target than if they followed it. She didn't want the tracker to be found and she wanted to know where the load ended up at.

Prior to the latest stop, Cameron considered taking the truckload of HK Tracks now and adding it to their stockpile of captured Skynet equipment. She wanted to know where it was headed. There was bound to be more equipment there. The unknown HK equipment needed to be destroyed if it couldn't be captured. It couldn't remain under Skynet control.

She decided to investigate it herself. She headed out. She would go alone. There was no need to endanger anyone else. She thought of bringing Savannah, but she didn't think it was necessary. She would try to keep it as a simple recon. It didn't take much to remind her a simple recon usually didn't stay simple for very long.

Cammy watched what Cameron was about to do. She carefully kept track of everything. She left Savannah's room when she received the update from CamNet about her tracker. She turned off Savannah's alarm before she silently left. She didn't see any reason why Savannah couldn't get a little extra rest.

"Did you forget anything?" Cammy asked as she blocked Cameron's path.

Cameron went to move around her. She didn't need any trouble.

"No." Cameron said.

Cammy wasn't going to give up easily. She knew what Savannah wanted. She didn't want Savannah to be the one out with Cameron now. She believed the nature of the threat could turn very ominous as events played out. She also didn't want to seem rude to Cameron. She knew Savannah didn't want them to have any more trouble.

"May I assist you?" Cammy asked. "Sometimes it's nice to have help."

Cameron was still miffed over her troubles with Cammy. She knew Cammy was as well. They both knew Savannah wanted them to stop the pettiness and work together. They also knew Savannah would want to go with either of them if they went out on an operation.

Savannah made both of them promise her to 'do the right things'. Savannah could have 'ordered' them to stop the trouble, but she didn't. She asked for their promise to her to stop it and help each other more.

Cameron hadn't forgotten Savannah asked her to not operate alone either if the situation could go hot. Savannah told her she would go with her if it was the case. Savannah made it clear there was always help available if she asked. Based upon the nature of the current situation, she would rather have Cammy take the risk as opposed to Savannah.

"Sure, Cammy, for Savannah." Cameron said. "We promised her."

Cammy didn't like Cameron to take the risk alone because of the grief it caused Savannah. It was her main reason for being there, beside the fact Savannah would be if she wasn't. It was the reason why she turned off Savannah's alarm before she left. She didn't want Savannah to hurry out after them if she woke up and found out they were gone. She also needed to consider the possibility Savannah would go out alone to catch up to them.

"It's for Savannah." Cammy said. "I turned her alarm off so she could rest a little longer."

Cammy felt it made her point in more ways than one. It was a reminder to Cameron she was the one in Savannah's room, not Cameron. It also indicated the nature of what would happen if she didn't accompany Cameron.

Cameron started to fill Cammy in.

Cammy actually felt it was her operation. She was the one who placed the tracker and sabotaged the HK Tracks. She was the one who took the initial risk to make it all happen. She wanted to let Cameron know she was on top of her operation.

"I have all the information." Cammy said. "I placed the tracker…."

Cameron checked her files and updated with CamNet. She could see she wasn't the only one who did so.

"I see you've communicated with CamNet as well." Cameron said.

Cammy wanted to know everything Cameron was involved with. She knew what Savannah wanted. Savannah didn't want Cameron to go off on her own. If she did, Savannah made it clear she would go with her. It was the last thing Cammy wanted to happen. She didn't want Savannah to face unnecessary risk. She couldn't let anything happen to Savannah.

"Yes." Cammy said. "I don't like surprises."

Cameron didn't like them either.

They stocked up an SUV with extra firepower and left. They figured based upon the nature of the threat, it wouldn't hurt to have a few LAW rockets along with them. They would be able to knock out an HK Tread with one of them. They needed to consider there could be HK Tracks as well as HK drones associated with the operation as there was at the previous location. The threat level was always high when dealing with anything Skynet related. The biggest threat to them would be Skynet Terminators.

They both knew it should be a recon first and not a direct assault. They only planned to check it out. They also both knew it would probably end up as much more. With two of them there it seemed like a good bet. They thought they could pull something off on their own, they would be more than tempted to do it. They would be able to hit CamNet up for additional resources and avoid the Command Center. There was no need to involve John or the Command Center until they knew more. They both worried the sooner John was involved, the more complicated their task would be, along with unnecessary interference.

John asked John Henry to try and keep track of Cameron. It wasn't a job he looked forward to. If Cameron didn't want to be tracked, she wouldn't be. He was a little surprised to watch them leave. He wondered if the time stamp was correct or if what he viewed was after the fact. Cameron always seemed to have a way of manipulating the records, especially with the assistance of CamNet.

"Cameron and Cammy just left." John Henry said.

John checked his monitors. Nothing new showed up.

"Where are they off to and to do what?" John asked. "Is it Skynet related or something personal?"

John didn't want to intrude on anything personal with Cameron. She made it clear to him he wasn't to intrude on any of her personal activities.

John Henry wasn't given the information. He did watch them stock up the SUV. What he viewed was after the fact. It was clear they took heavier weapons with them than they would normally take on most operations. They were already gone. HE could only think of one thing which recently occurred, as to why they would need the additional firepower.

"I don't know." John Henry said. "The best deduction is the truckload full of HK Tracks Cammy tagged. They took extra firepower with them. I noticed there were some additional LAW rockets."

John asked Cameron about the very same thing before. She stormed out of the Command Center over it. Well, there was the fact the conversation wasn't very civil.

"Beautiful…." John said.

John Henry was worried Cameron still tried to bear the brunt of the enemy activity herself. It seemed all the things they tried to do to prevent it, didn't seem to have any effect. He didn't think there was anything beautiful about it.

"Not really." John Henry said. "Cameron's trying to protect everyone still. She's become increasingly worried about our Terminators as well."

John was worried about some of their Terminators too for a different reason. Gail was one of the few Terminators he saw all the time since she was always at the base and usually with Jesse.

"I've noticed Gail acting differently lately." John said. "Ever since the big raid she's acted differently."

John Henry was surprised John hadn't mentioned it until now. It seemed to be a common concern among everyone. It was clear Gail was infatuated with Savannah on a different level.

"Yes, everyone's noticed it." John Henry said.

John couldn't help but ask the same question they all asked each other.

"We know she deactivated two Terminators." John said. "I don't think we know all the details associated with it."

John Henry didn't think it was the avenue to pursue.

"Savannah was very clear with her report." John Henry said. "Gail fought two Terminators and deactivated both of them. She said she witnessed it herself."

John thought the best way to determine what happened, or what else happened, was by what the deactivated Terminators saw. There should be a video record. John Henry should have processed all the information by now.

"Did you review the chips of the two Terminators she deactivated?" John asked.

John Henry attempted the procedure already. He was very disturbed by what he found, or in this case, didn't find.

"I did." John Henry said. "Their files, once they started stalking Gail, have been erased. There's no record of what occurred afterwards, including the fight."

John sat up and looked at John Henry.

"By who, who did it?" John asked. "Was it erased on both of them?"

John thought it was something different, especially different from normal. It sounded fishy to him. It sounded like something Cameron would do. He wondered how she was mixed up in it.

John Henry didn't know for sure. What he did find bothered him greatly. He kept his findings to himself until John asked because of their inconclusiveness. He suspected Cameron at first. Based on what happened between Cammy and Cameron recently, he wasn't about to make any accusations he couldn't back up. What he did find was disturbing enough.

"I believe it was done by Savannah." John Henry said. "She covered her tracks well. I was only able to deduce it was her by her location and the time the equipment was accessed. I don't know for sure. It could have been done by someone else too to make it look like it was Savannah. It could be to throw us off too. We know there are more than a few individuals who are capable of attempting the same thing."

It didn't make any sense to John. Why would Savannah do it? Something else must have happened. Maybe it was Cameron. Would Cameron 'frame' Savannah? He doubted it. Unfortunately, he couldn't put it past her either. No. Nobody would try to make Savannah look bad or frame her for anything.

"Is Savannah trying to hide something or cover it up?" John asked. "Why?"

All John Henry could do was speculate. He did plenty as he tried to come up with an answer on his own. There was no conclusive proof or reason to anything.

"I don't know." John Henry said. "It would have to be something which was important to her for her to do it. I believe it involved Gail. I think she did it for Gail. I don't know if Gail was involved or not. I don't think so. I don't know."

John wondered if something happened to Savannah. Maybe he wouldn't get her virginity after all. Maybe it was already gone. Maybe she was jumped by the Gray patrol. He pictured four men holding her down while they took turns one after another. Wait. Why would he think that? It's the kind of things which happened to the girls from the future. It was probably another issue.

"Why?" John asked. "Something bad must have happened. Savannah said Gail was the one who deactivated the two Terminators she fought."

John Henry ran every scenario over and over. They all led back to only one explanation and Gail's subsequent behavior.

"I don't believe it's a lie." John Henry said. "I believe Gail did deactivate them."

John didn't care for the word games. He still didn't know any more than he did earlier. What he thought about possibly happening to Savannah was still in the back of his mind. He wished he wouldn't have thought it, but he did.

"Then what's this about?" John asked.

John was aware Savannah made a 'problem' for him 'go away' too before. It was a really big problem. Cameron never said another word to him about it, and it was as if nothing ever happened. He really owed Savannah a big one for it. Under normal circumstances Cameron would have created a lot of grief for him over the events which occurred, even if nothing actually occurred, which was the case. No one ever spoke of it again either, maybe it was something similar. John trusted Savannah so it must be something important to her. The 'Chosen One' title popped into his mind.

John Henry knew Savannah's actions were the same as if Cameron did them. They weren't to be questioned or disputed. The 'Chosen One' knew what was best for all of them. Cameron told him it herself. CamNet often reminded him, just as she did again right now. He didn't want to have his system shut down as 'punishment' if he said the wrong things.

"Since Savannah has done this, and her story hasn't changed, I suggest we drop it." John Henry said. "Whatever happened out there, Savannah tried to fix it and help Gail."

John did understand it, but he did want to know a little more.

"Where's Gail at?" John asked.

John Henry was a little disturbed at what he observed for the last few hours. He would have preferred if John hadn't asked. He certainly wasn't going to say anything on his own.

"She's standing outside of Savannah's room waiting for her to get up." John Henry said.

John Henry showed John the feed.

John watched and waited for Gail to do something or even move. She just stood there and looked at the door. He wanted to verify it was a video image in real time and not a still shot.

"Is she just standing there?" John asked.

John Henry was troubled by it as well. There was a secondary issue which arose over it as well. It involved Savannah. Cameron told him he wasn't supposed to worry about personal issues.

"Yes." John Henry said. "She's been there for three hours. Savannah is usually up by now."

John stood up. He quickly sat back down. He knew he better not overreact to anything. It sounded to him like there was an additional problem.

"Is something wrong?" John asked.

John thought about going there to check, but remembered showing up at Savannah's room the last two times 'ended' differently than he thought it would.

"I don't know." John Henry said. "CamNet was involved with a lot of activity yesterday around the time of a bank robbery which failed, I've since found out. All the security cameras in the area, and around the surrounding parts of town were blocked. Whatever happened was covered up as well as where anyone came from or went."

John was really confused now. Did John Henry indicate Savannah was involved in a bank robbery with CamNet's assistance? It didn't make any sense. There were literally millions of dollars in cash laying around the base. The cash was from the drug and sex trafficking trade Cameron took down outside the scope of the Resistance. He needed some clarification. Maybe someone else needed the money. He wanted some clarification.

"Was CamNet involved in a bank robbery?" John asked. "Was Savannah part of it?"

John Henry tilted his head slightly. John was way off the mark based on his findings. He hadn't mentioned them to John yet. It appeared an explanation was in order.

"Until Cameron, Cammy, Gail, and Savannah returned last night, I didn't suspect anything." John Henry said. "Cameron and Savannah left together. I show Cammy and Gail leaving separately, but they all returned in one SUV."

John was worried Cameron or one of the others may have experienced a 'problem' which was mistaken for a 'bank robbery'.

"Is this some new thing we need to worry about?" John asked. "Did one of them 'glitch' out?"

John Henry knew the surveillance footage was gone, but there were eye witness reports. It was clear by the savagery a Terminator was involved.

"Reports show three dead perpetrators inside the bank, and one dead outside in the 'getaway van'. All died from blunt force trauma with multiple broken bones. One of the emergency responders said it looked like a 'gorilla attack'. He didn't know any other kind of animal which could exhibit such brute force against a human."

John hoped nothing related to them was exposed. There could be a lot of questions and Skynet would become interested as well.

"No one saw anything either, right?" John asked.

John Henry did know Cameron tried to keep any of the humans away from her 'off the books' activity.

"No." John Henry said. "I think the girls were busy, or stumbled across something. They may have been caught up in it by chance. I don't think Cameron would've allowed Savannah to be around it unless it happened while they were there. It may have been as defensive as it was an offensive attack."

Now John knew there was one more thing to worry about.

"I don't even know what goes on around here any more." John said.

John Henry processed massive amounts of information every second. With anything which involved Cameron, he was pretty much in the dark as well.

"Don't feel bad." John Henry said. "I'm plugged in about twenty three hours a day into a massive network, and I don't either."

John knew where the real source of information was at.

"Did you check with CamNet?" John asked.

John Henry knew it was a mistake as soon as he asked CamNet about it. The answer was a little more cordial than usual. It was probably because Savannah was involved to some extent.

"Yes." John Henry said. "CamNet directed me to contact Cameron herself for any information or updates."

John shook his head. He checked the multiple screens. He wanted to check up on Savannah. If Cameron and Cammy were away, he might have another 'shot' at her. He really wanted her virginity. His earlier thought about it being stripped away was still in the back of his mind. He wanted to collect it before it was taken by someone else. He noticed someone was missing.

"Where did Gail go?" John asked.

John Henry wondered when John would try to spy on Savannah again. It took longer than he thought it would.

"She went into Savannah's room three minutes ago." John Henry said.

John knew he should have left sooner. Now it looked like Gail would be the one to share with Savannah. He wasn't sure exactly who was involved with whom, he did know Savannah was very active with all of the females.

"Why didn't you tell me?" John asked.

John Henry was warned before, and constantly reminded, about the 'personal policy' rules.

"It has been dictated to all Terminators, any individual's private lives are not to be monitored or discussed. It applies to humans or Terminator's." John Henry said. "Any breech is grounds for deactivation and possible termination, depending on the severity of the infraction."

It sounded overbearing to John. It didn't sound like something Savannah would condone. He wanted to make sure it wasn't her.

"Where did the policy originate from?" John asked.

John Henry decided to keep it simple.

"It was decreed by Cameron." John Henry said. "Nobody has questioned it."

John shook his head as he studied the security footage to see if he could see anything when Gail entered Savannah's room. He couldn't

"Beautiful…." John said disgustedly.

Then again, maybe it was a good policy. He still needed a few future 'adventures' to try. It was what Cameron said she wanted. Maybe he should see what Vanna was up to. Wait. If Gail was in Savannah's room, the fact meant Jesse should be free. He couldn't help but think about how she flashed one of her nipple rings at him yesterday in the commissary. He knew it wasn't an accident. He knew it was an invitation.

John looked over at John Henry and made a quick adjustment to his pants.

Earlier:

Savannah awoke.

It was late. Her alarm was off. She knew she set it.

Damn.

Cammy turned it off.

It meant Cammy must be up to something.

Savannah cleaned up and hurried to get dressed.

There was a knock at the door.

Savannah was surprised. It seemed lately people just walked in.

"Come in." Savannah said. "Everyone else does."

Gail opened the door and walked in.

Savannah knew it was something different. It was something which never happened before. She immediately felt some concern and worry.

"Is everything OK?" Savannah asked. "Is Jesse OK?"

Savannah paused as she was about to put her bra on. She waited a moment before she did and then put her top on. Gail got a good look at her.

Gail watched Savannah intently. Savannah's beauty exhilarated her. She noted how perfect her skin was compared to the girls from the future. She needed to refocus her attention.

"I think so." Gail said. "I wanted to see you this morning…."

Savannah was worried. She wondered if she did something wrong. Maybe she upset Gail yesterday. She knew the polite thing to do would be to apologize. Humans liked those who owned up to their mistakes more than they did those who didn't. She figured it was the same for cyborgs.

"If I offended you yesterday, I apologize." Savannah said.

Gail tilted her head slightly. She didn't see how Savannah could ever offend her.

"What? No." Gail said. "I wanted to go with you to breakfast."

Savannah was confused. Something was off here.

"With me?" Savannah asked. "Is Jesse alright?"

Gail looked back towards the door. She left Jesse in good hands.

"I left Jesse with Ally and Sheila." Gail said. "They'll make her 'alright' if she's not."

Savannah knew it was true. Two Terminators could make anyone 'alright'. It still left a few unanswered questions.

"Does anyone know you're here now?" Savannah asked.

Gail looked at the security camera before she waited in front of Savannah's door for her to awaken.

"John Henry does." Gail said. "He monitors everything."

Savannah was sure CamNet did too. She thought about it on a more personal level.

"I meant Jesse or Cammy." Savannah said.

Gail was there because Cammy was gone.

"No." Gail said. "Cammy left with Cameron earlier."

Savannah stopped tying her shoe and looked at Gail. She KNEW it was why Cammy shut off her alarm. Everything quickly took on all the makings of a 'fast one'. She wondered who was behind it. No, she didn't need to wonder. It would be Cameron.

"Do you know where they are or where they went?" Savannah asked.

Gail thought the answer seemed easy enough to find out.

"No." Gail said. "I'll ask John Henry."

If Savannah wasn't so upset right now, she would have laughed. She knew how Cameron operated.

"Don't waste your time." Savannah said. "Cameron will have covered up whatever it is she's really doing."

Gail was unsure why she was there. It excited her to watch Savannah get dressed. She would have preferred to watch Savannah get undressed.

Savannah felt the need to become involved. The clandestine nature of the activity by Cameron and Cammy dictated her personal intervention. She needed a Terminator. There was no need to look for Bob or Jim. She already knew Ally and Sheila were busy with Jesse. Gail was right there.

"Do you want to go for a drive?" Savannah asked.

Savannah saw Gail's face light up.

"Just us?" Gail asked. "Like a date?"

Gail's statement caught Savannah way off guard.

"What?" Savannah asked.

Gail knew she pushed too hard. She also sensed danger was sure to follow.

"I think you want to find Cameron and Cammy." Gail said. "Do you wish for additional assistance?"

Savannah didn't want to make a big deal about it. There were several ways she could play it.

"No." Savannah said. "It can be just us. We'll look out for each other."

Gail liked the idea. Savannah already saved her and she assisted Savannah with the van driver yesterday. They did look out for each other.

"OK." Gail said.

Savannah figured the best way not to make waves was to deal directly with CamNet. CamNet was very attuned to her requests. She knew CamNet was very attuned to everything she did.

"I'll contact CamNet." Savannah said. "She'll help me out with what I need to know."

Gail saw there was a downside to CamNet's assistance.

"It will also alert Cameron we're coming." Gail said.

Savannah knew she could ask CamNet not to alert Cameron. She thought there was a plus side if CamNet did alert Cameron. It would be a way for her not to directly tell Cameron to take it easy. The implication would be there instead.

"It's even better." Savannah said. "Maybe Cameron will be a little more careful."

Savannah knew how these things usually turned out…. She was glad Cammy was with Cameron, but she knew she needed to be with Cameron on this one. She figured she knew what the target was. She also knew Cammy went in her place. Cammy went with Cameron to protect her, more than she did to assist Cameron. She was also pleased to see Cameron and Cammy work together.

She looked over at Gail. There was a smile on her face as she looked at her. She thought Gail looked really pretty when she smiled.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

Even Better

Everyone hopes to find the one
Is there really such a thing
Maybe they should consider
Who's taken them under their wing

The person of one's dreams
Does not really exist
They become angry and frustrated
If with an unrealistic vision they persist

It will often be someone around them
That they finally notice is there
Everything will alter and change
When one of them takes the dare

One always needs to remember
That all relationships have a shelf life
It is six month to two years
Before it turns into some type of strife

It is usually sooner rather than later
That one ends up wearing a scarlet letter
That often happens in the endless quest
To find one or more that's even better

Nobody