Chapter 608

That's A Good Question

Savannah was a little concerned with whatever Cameron and Cammy were really up to. It seemed to be more than they alluded to. It wouldn't be anything new. She needed to fulfill her commitment to Claire.

It was time to get started.

The girls departed for Palmdale.

Savannah promised Claire she would personally bring Young Allison back to her. It was specifically back to her the same way she left Palmdale earlier in the morning. Cammy would meet them on the way. She would bring her back to the Resistance base.

Hanna drove, Anna was in the front next to her. Savannah and Young Allison sat in the back. Everything started out in a very typical and ordinary fashion. They didn't see the need to have any other Terminators follow them because they would meet up with Cammy later on.

Savannah and Young Allison played a game as they drove along. They looked for 'out of state' license plates. Young Allison then added in a specific type of car with extra points for a silver one. Savannah upped the ante and added another specific car and color.

The game was simple, but it forced the girls to look and concentrate. Anna and Hanna were both disqualified from playing once they both identified vehicles which were too far away for Savannah and Young Allison to see and make out the details or license plates.

The act of disqualification left both of the Metal girls miffed. They said they only used their natural ability. It didn't seem unfair to them. They pointed out some individuals were just better at things than other individuals. Not everyone could be a rocket scientist or an Olympic athlete. The success of the individual depended upon their 'natural ability'. It could be their 'natural ability' to learn, or their 'natural ability' in a physical manner.

Savannah was aware Cameron got into more than a few scrapes with people, usually men, when she beat them soundly at something. It didn't matter if it was academic or of a physical nature. It was usually sports related. The defeated person would say it was impossible. Cameron would asked them, 'If it's impossible, how did I just do it?' It usually set them off. It would result in some further Terminator activity of some sort. A few actually ended in terminations when someone wouldn't let it go, or they wanted to 'teach' Cameron a lesson. When it came to 'lessons', Cameron was always the teacher.

Anna watched the girls. She could tell they were having a good time and fun. The 'Savannah' in her knew Savannah was deprived of many things growing up. The 'Savannah' in her tried to make sure Young Allison experienced more of the things Savannah didn't have. The 'Savannah' in her also knew Savannah missed her parents, both of them, actually all THREE of them. At least Young Allison's parents were still alive and around for her. She did understand Savannah's concern about not letting Claire know they were going to the Resistance base in the middle of the night. Originally Holly was going to go with them, but Hanna was substituted at the last minute. Hanna would've made sure every time Claire woke up she'd be pleasured and soon fall back asleep.

The 'Cameron' in Anna, which was her base program, didn't think the Metal girls were provided to the human females so they could be better controlled. It may have worked out in such a way on multiple occasions, but it was never the intent at the beginning. The purpose of a Metal girl was to make sure the human female was protected. The control issue became a secondary issue which just seemed to play out. The human female was always allowed the opportunity to put their foot down and make their own decision, one way or the other.

Young Allison saw where they were on the 14 Freeway. They could exit the freeway at Sierra Highway or Placerita Canyon Road to get to the old road since they were 'old roads' themselves. Placerita Canyon was just a few miles away from where they were now. It was where gold was first discovered in California in 1842. It was more than half a decade before the 'Gold Rush' happened further north. The first successful oil refinery in California, built in 1876, was only a few miles away to the west of them. There was a lot of history around them. There were mines of various types scattered throughout the foothills. Some of the mines remained in service for decades after most of the others failed and were abandoned. It seemed the landscape was able to offer a lot of resources over the years.

"Can we take the old road?" Young Allison asked.

Hanna was reluctant to take what was basically a two lane road. There were a lot of curves. Many of them were blind curves. She wouldn't be able to see what was ahead of them around most corners.

"It's more susceptible to an ambush." Hanna said. "It's better if we stay on the freeway where I have room to maneuver. I can always turn around and drive back through oncoming traffic to evade a pursuer."

It pretty much sounded like a nightmare to Savannah. She could actually picture vehicles swerving in all directions to avoid what would appear to be a head on collision. They wouldn't know the driver headed towards them possess incredibly fast reflexes. The slow reflexes of the humans would lead to multiple accidents in attempting to correct at the wrong point in time when they should have corrected earlier. Once the cars begin to swerve to avoid what they thought would be a head on collision, there would be sideswipes and other events which would send vehicles in all directions. It would be hard for a pursuer to follow them through the wreckage left behind on the freeway.

"I would prefer not to be in a vehicle going the wrong way on a freeway into oncoming traffic going seventy or eighty miles an hour." Savannah said. "I would need to think the risk of termination would be greater with such an event than simply driving on a remote highway where there was little to no traffic. No one knows we will be on the road. We don't even know."

Young Allison knew how to play the 'game'. She was around Terminators enough to know how they operated and what they responded to. In other words, she knew how to 'push their buttons'. It was more in reference to a mental exercise rather than a physical one.

"There are three females here with me who almost all look the same. I don't think it will be a problem." Young Allison said. "Maybe we should wait for Cammy then. She won't be afraid. She's not afraid of anything, or anyone."

Young Allison looked at Savannah and winked at her.

Savannah knew what Young Allison just did. She wanted to see if they would take the bait. She knew the other Metal girls didn't like to be 'shown up' by Cameron, especially if they ran a copy of her program. It was something she experienced with Cammy continuously in reference or regards to Cameron.

Hanna didn't need to look at the road sign to know where they were at.

"The turnoff is in a few miles." Hanna said. "I'll take it. How hard can it be?"

Savannah also learned at an early age how to 'prompt' Terminators to get them to react in a manner they otherwise wouldn't have. It was a subtle way to 'motivate' them to change their original plan without asking them to do so. It appeared Young Allison learned the same thing. Then again, she may have mentioned it to her a few times. She always tried to give Young Allison advice and pointers to make her life easier.

Anna looked back at Savannah and then at Young Allison. She knew what Young Allison was doing. She thought there was another more important issue which needed to be dealt with first. It was Savannah's ride home after they got to Palmdale.

"Cammy's not here yet." Anna said. "We need to meet up with her."

Hanna thought it was an excellent idea. Cammy could use her vehicle as a battering ram if they got into a scrape. She glanced back at Savannah and decided not to mention it. She didn't want her to put the lid on the idea before it could be implemented.

Young Allison thought Cammy should be there by now. They already exceeded the previous rendezvous time. She didn't want to cause a problem or create an issue, but she felt it was a valid question.

"Where is Cammy anyway?" Young Allison asked.

Savannah was concerned about it as well. It wasn't something she wanted to make a big deal about, but it seemed they should know more than they did. She checked her phone.

"That's a good question." Savannah said. "We should've heard from her again by now."

Savannah still felt there was more going on than she knew. Cameron wasn't as forthcoming with the facts as she should be sometimes. If she pressed her, Cameron wouldn't lie to her. Cammy was the same way, she was 'Cameron' by extension. Cammy was 'a Cameron'. Cammy was 'her Cameron'.

Anna took her phone out. She was concerned now as well.

Savannah didn't have any luck to reach Cammy. She doubted Anna would either.

"I already tried it." Savannah said.

Hanna tilted her head slightly. She didn't like the uncertainty of any of it.

"John Henry will know." Hanna said.

Young Allison was aware of how Cameron and her clones operated. She simply pointed out the obvious. It was what they all knew anyway.

"He'll only know what Cameron or Cammy wants him to know." Young Allison said. "I follow the operations too. I know how a lot of these things play out."

Anna reminded Young Allison of another choice. She believed Young Allison or Savannah would be a better choice to follow up on it than either Hanna or her.

"You can obtain information from CamNet." Anna said.

Savannah already started a call to CamNet.

"I can too." Savannah said. "I'm going to get some information now."

Hanna and Anna looked at each other. They both knew anything from Savannah, like a command or an 'order', was the same as if it was from Cameron. They were aware it applied to Young Allison as well by extension.

Savannah contacted CamNet to find out what was really going on. It was a 'privilege' she never abused, nor would she. She believed it was an important operational issue, not a personal one.

She saw it as her function to help protect Cameron and 'her clones' from themselves. Protecting Cameron from harm protected John and all of them, as well as the future. She knew her duties and responsibilities. She also knew she also needed to honor her promises. She intended to do it for all of them.

Savannah wasn't too happy about the result.

"CamNet reported Cammy is out of contact." Savannah said.

CamNet sent the information to Anna and Hanna as well as Cameron.

Savannah got a call from Cameron seconds later. She knew Anna and Hanna could hear the conversation. She put it on speaker phone anyway for Young Allison's benefit.

"Hello, Cameron. Where's Cammy at and what's she doing?" Savannah asked. "Allison is here with us too. We're on speaker phone. We were supposed to have a rendezvous. Now I can't reach her. Nobody can."

Cameron filled them in on what was happening and what she asked Cammy to do on her way to meet up with them. She didn't think it would be a problem.

It seemed fairly straight forward to Savannah. It sounded like a simple recon.

"It doesn't sound high risk." Savannah said.

Cameron was a little worried as to why Cammy was unreachable now as well. She wanted to investigate it herself.

"No, it shouldn't have been. It was a small lead I wanted her to run down." Cameron said. "I'm headed there now. It's going to take me a little time."

Hanna was worried about Cammy. They weren't too far away from the area Cameron indicated. It was approximately the same area where CamNet lost contact with Cammy as well.

"We're much closer." Hanna said. "I can be there in eleven minutes if I turn around now."

Savannah was worried about Cammy. She needed to think of Young Allison as well.

"We have Allison with us." Savannah said. "Her safety is paramount. It comes before mine."

Young Allison was a team player. Everything wasn't about her. There were several options she could see right now. It seemed to her the biggest one was finding out what happened to one of their team. It was all something which seemed to happen within the last half hour or less.

"We need to help Cammy." Young Allison said. "Hanna and Anna can be let off to help and Savannah can always drive me away. I can drive too if I need to. If something's wrong, the longer we wait, the worse it will get."

Savannah wanted to help Cammy but not endanger Young Allison. She needed to know what else was involved.

"Cameron, how serious is this?" Savannah asked. "I need a straight answer. I need to think about Allison and Cammy. They're very important issues to me, to all of us."

They all knew Cameron liked to cover all the bases for Young Allison.

"CamNet hasn't reported any gunfire or explosions in the area. There's been no 911 activity." Cameron said. "The risk is minimal. The area is remote and isolated."

Savannah needed to make a choice. She wanted to cover both options. She was worried she wouldn't keep her promise to Claire. She also needed to worry about Cammy. No contact for an extended period of time seemed to indicate trouble.

"Hanna and I will go in and take a look. You can pick us up later, Cameron." Savannah said. "Anna will drive Allison home."

Cameron hoped she could do more sooner. She couldn't.

"I'll see you soon. I'm already on my way." Cameron said and hung up.

Savannah reached into the back and started to pull out vests. She wanted to make sure Young Allison was protected.

"Allison, I want you to put yours on right now." Savannah said. "It's a precaution."

Young Allison took it and slipped it on.

Savannah put hers on also and double checked Young Allison's.

Young Allison noted it wasn't a tight fit. She felt she was growing out of hers in Palmdale.

"This is a little bigger than the special ones Cameron made for Summer and me." Young Allison said. "This is a more comfortable fit for me."

Savannah handed vests up to Anna and Hanna. An M4 went up front for each of them as well.

Savannah looked at Young Allison. She took what was happening very seriously. She wanted Young Allison to do the same.

"I know you've been trained, Allison." Savannah said. "I can't allow you in harm's way. I promised your mother I would get you home the same way you left, including condition and age. Combat wasn't even a consideration in the equation."

Anna shot Savannah a questioning look. She wasn't sure she liked the implications of her statement.

Young Allison was aware Savannah reloaded for Gail yesterday since Gail could engage two separate areas at the same time. She could do the same for Anna. She could do more too.

"I can reload for Anna if she needs help if we run into any trouble." Young Allison said. "I can shoot too if it's necessary. It will be like Gail and Savannah yesterday."

Anna felt a glitch impulse. She suppressed it. She didn't want to drag Young Allison into any combat.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves." Anna said. "It could be nothing."

Savannah and Young Allison looked at each other. They both knew it wasn't going to be the case. Their gut feeling, based upon the circumstances, wasn't a good one. The atmosphere in the SUV reeked of impending combat. None of them knew what they were about to face.

Savannah felt Cammy was in danger. She also didn't want to endanger Young Allison. She knew if she needed to make a choice, it would have to be Young Allison. There was a copy of Cammy's program….

Young Allison gave Savannah's hand a reassuring squeeze. They'd get through everything somehow. She didn't want another team member 'hung out to dry', because of her. It wasn't right. Savannah told her she needed to do what was right, because it was right. She would insist they took measures to assist and protect Cammy if the issue arose again. It was the right thing to do.

Hanna got off the freeway and headed for one of the remote roads in the foothills. The remoteness of it spelled trouble. There were plenty of canyon and mountain roads which existed in the foothills. There were many different types of mining for years. It was all pretty much abandoned. There were even times when the tailings were worked a second or third time over the years. Everything was pretty much played out at this point.

Savannah tried to see what the best way in would be. They needed another vehicle so Anna and Young Allison could leave. Unless they stopped someone and carjacked them, it seemed like a remote possibility at this point. She didn't want one of the Metal girls to take things too far. When a Terminator wanted something, especially when they felt they needed to protect someone, there were very few things they wouldn't do. If they needed something, and someone got in the way, they were simply terminated. Terminated people didn't cause problems. There wasn't any other traffic at all.

Hanna rapidly, but cautiously, approached the area where Cammy should be. They didn't think they would pose a threat to anyone. Then again, there were three of them in the vehicle which looked nearly identical. There was also someone who looked identical to Cammy.

"We're a half mile from Cammy's last known position." Hanna said.

Savannah looked up at the sky. It was still in the morning. It severely limited their options for taking a closer look.

"I would say we hike in, but it's broad daylight." Savannah said. "If we start walking around with all our gear and weapons showing, someone may spot us. It will start a panic. This road is remote and seldom used, but all it takes is one 'busybody'."

Young Allison didn't think a passerby would be the only threat.

"You need to worry about the enemy spotting you, before you spot them." Young Allison said. "It's a real possibility if they're operating from a clandestine location. If they ran into trouble with Cammy, they will be on the lookout."

Savannah knew another option was to leave the gear and only carry a pistol and a Taser and look like day hikers. It might draw another type of attention to them as 'prey'. More than one cult like 'Family' was known to have roamed the remote hills. One of them even attempted to start a race riot, so their leader could take over the world, when everything all fell apart.

Young Allison could see everyone was worried about her. She felt Cammy should be the issue. She didn't need any special consideration. She was trained too. She knew how to do everything the rest of them did, even if she hadn't done much of it herself under real conditions.

"Cammy comes first. We do what we need to do without hesitation." Young Allison said. "CamNet and John Henry can 'fix' everything else, they always do."

Savannah didn't like Young Allison to spend all of her alone time on Resistance matters.

"Don't you have 'girl things' you would rather do than monitor all our feeds?" Savannah asked.

Young Allison looked quickly at Savannah. She didn't feel she did anything 'wrong'. It was her life she needed to prepare for.

"No. I know my future and my destiny." Young Allison said. "I'm part of the 'Natural Order'. I'll need to fight at some point. We all know it. You're all here to help me now."

Savannah knew Cameron pounded it into Young Allison's head since she could talk. She was sure of the things Cameron made Young Allison promise as well. It was clear Young Allison thought about them when she looked at the wedding dress. The future was a lot to lay on a young person. She wanted Young Allison to have more diversity.

"Anna, I want more 'girl things' for Allison." Savannah said.

Anna doubted it would happen. It didn't seem to be something Young Allison wanted.

"Is that an 'order'?" Anna asked.

Savannah frowned slightly. It shouldn't be anything so extreme.

"No. It's a request." Savannah said.

Young Allison looked upset. She frowned at Savannah.

"Oh, brother…." Young Allison said. "Now, you sound like my mother."

Anna thought Young Allison needed to be reminded why people worried and cared about her.

"Or someone who loves you and cares about you very much." Anna said.

Young Allison quickly looked at Savannah with the last statement. It was how she felt too….

"I'm sorry." Young Allison said.

Savannah looked at Young Allison.

"You know I love you and I care about you." Savannah said.

Young Allison hugged Savannah.

"I love you too." Young Allison said.

Young Allison was even more concerned because Savannah didn't have a mother, well, not a real one anyway. It was something she couldn't even imagine. Allison told her what it was like not having their parents around after Judgment Day. Bad things happened to her. It all made her feel a little guiltier about trying to pull a fast one with her mother in the early hours of the morning.

Hanna wanted to keep everyone in focus. There were a lot of things she didn't like the further they went on. She didn't care for the open terrain. It was mostly dried scrub brush, dirt, and rocks. There were a few scattered trees, very few. She didn't want to attract any unnecessary attention by looking around or driving too slow. She needed to continue through the area at the speed limit.

"I'm going to drive through the area at road speed. I want it to look like we're passing through." Hanna said. "Everyone keep their eyes open. If we slow down or stop, we're probably going to become the center of attention if there's anything going on around us."

They started their drive through the area.

In just a few minutes Anna noted a change. She was receiving information from CamNet. It faded and ended abruptly.

"I've lost contact with CamNet." Anna said. "It was rather sudden."

Savannah checked her phone.

"I can't reach anyone either." Savannah said. "Our communications aren't normally blocked. We've only ever encountered it at Skynet related facilities. It's usually very localized."

Hanna thought the new event was a lot like a Skynet jamming field.

"It means something is happening here." Hanna said. "Cammy would have experienced it as well. She would have come to the same conclusion. She most likely attempted to take a closer look and investigate its source."

Savannah saw it for what it was. The area reeked of Skynet and all the danger which went with it. She glanced around the terrain and then at Young Allison. She needed to make a choice.

"I want Allison out of here, now." Savannah said. "Drive away from here, Hanna."

Young Allison didn't want it to happen. One of the team must be in a jam. It was why they couldn't contact them. They would have known they were in a zone where a signal couldn't get out or in. They should have moved to an area where they could communicate if they were able to. They couldn't just turn and run. It wasn't the right thing to do.

"What about Cammy?" Young Allison asked. "She may need our help."

Hanna told it like it was.

"You're part of the 'Natural Order'." Hanna said. "Cammy isn't."

It was the same thing Savannah already thought. It didn't need to be spoken.

"Hanna!" Savannah said. "Don't, please."

Hanna didn't mean to be cruel or insensitive. She simply stated what was fact.

"I'm sorry." Hanna said.

Young Allison reached over and gave Savannah's hand a gentle squeeze to reassure her.

"We don't run." Young Allison said. "We need to do the right thing. "I'm as ready for everything as you were at my age." Young Allison said. "I will go look for Cammy on my own if I need to. I swear."

It wasn't what Savannah wanted to hear. She needed more options. They were literally in the dark right now.

"Get out of the communication blocking zone and we will call everyone in on this." Savannah said.

It sounded like a lot of resources to Anna.

"Everyone?" Anna asked.

"Everyone!" Savannah said.

Young Allison didn't want to abandon anyone. She could call in 'everyone' herself if she needed to. She knew it would be a bold move if she did.

"We need to find Cammy." Young Allison said. "We can't leave her here alone."

Savannah knew things at a deeper level. They all knew it, but she decided to spell it out. It mattered.

"Cammy has almost all the same information on her chip as Cameron does." Savannah said. "Everything about everything is on it. Our entire operation could be in danger if things take a turn for the worse."

Hanna continued through the area at a higher rate of speed. She hoped to clear the jamming field. It would also narrow down the area they would need to search. It would give them a perimeter on both sides of the road. The center spot should indicate where the jamming field originated from.

"Communications are back up." Hanna said.

Savannah wanted everyone notified in case they lost communications again. If someone suspected them, they could increase the power to the jamming field and make it much larger.

"Hanna, call John Henry. Anna, call CamNet. Fill both of them in." Savannah said. "I'll call Cameron. We have a specific area now. We know where to look. We know who the enemy is."

Young Allison wondered how the change in plans was going to go over at her house.

"Is anyone going to call my mom?" Young Allison asked.

Savannah looked at Young Allison.

"I will." Savannah said. "YOU are my responsibility."

Savannah started to take off her vest.

"What are you doing?" Young Allison asked.

There was some sadness in Savannah's eyes.

"I'm making sure you're better protected." Savannah said. Two vests will shield more of your body."

Everyone in the SUV knew how much Savannah cared for Young Allison.

"Stop." Anna said. "I'll give her mine. You must wear yours Savannah. Cameron has a copy of my program, OUR program…."

There was a very ominous feeling in the air.

They needed to protect Young Allison and they needed to act to find Cammy. It didn't appear all would end well for everyone. They didn't even know what they faced yet.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

That's A Good Question

Do they love me
Do they love me not
Or is it an obsession
That's a good question

What is inside
Does anyone know
That drives one's soul
What will make them whole

Is each new day
Really different from the last
It doesn't seem that way
No matter what people say

When one reaches out
Will another reach back
Will it fade to black
Or seem like an attack

Is there really a light
At the end of the tunnel
Or only endless depression
That's a good question

Nobody