Chapter 764

Teddy Bear

Bob, Sheila, and Cammy left the quarry behind. There were four terminated Grays buried under tons of rock. They gave up several locations. They were sure they would be able to find at least one more of the big rigs, if not both of them. It didn't matter so much if they found them right away or not. As long as they arrived at the location, there would be more Grays who they could make talk. There were several ways which it could be accomplished.

Steve, Tom, and Al already left in search of another location they were given by one of the Grays before his termination. They stopped by the location where the big rig was left inside of the dilapidated barn. The surveillance equipment left behind didn't indicate anyone approached the area yet.

They left their truck near the same spot where Steve concealed it earlier. They used a more roundabout approach to reach the buildings. They came from the back way and checked each of the buildings. Nothing was disturbed at the outbuildings. They made their way towards the barn.

Al showed them two boards he loosened up on the side of the barn. They carefully moved each of those off to the side, and passed inside of the building. The big rig was still parked as they left it. None of the doors were tampered with or wired with booby traps. They were certain the Grays hadn't found the empty truck. They discussed moving it at a later date to see if it did attract anyone's attention.

The three male Terminators secured the two boards on the side of the barn. They made their way back to the truck from a different direction than they left from. No one tampered with their vehicle, there was no indication anyone other than their team visited the area, besides the two Grays who were terminated. They got back in their truck and continued on their journey. They were going to check out a lead given to them by one of the Grays. They hope to find one of the big rigs.

Bob, Sheila, and Cammy neared one of the locations given up by the Grays they 'interrogated'. The ride there was almost in total silence. Sheila didn't feel good about what she needed to do to get the answers they wanted. She tried not to enjoy her 'work', but she still did, even if it wasn't as much. Cammy was silent but held her hand for much of the journey as Bob drove.

Cammy felt the future weigh on her and knew it wouldn't be long until John or Cameron claimed Savannah. Her future would then be in the past. The past she spent with Sheila. She looked at Sheila and smiled.

Sheila looked at Cammy and leaned Cammy's head on her shoulder. It was an unspoken closeness. A closeness forged by time.

Cammy readily accepted Sheila's show of affection.

Sheila, like Jesse, craved the submissiveness of another female. She knew Jesse often demanded her submissive females prove their love to her. Jesse didn't mutilate them, she made them mutilate themselves. Once they were mutilated, she no longer wanted them. She moved on to the next one.

It wasn't something she started to do, yet. Well, not the same way anyway. It would happen whenever she borrowed another female Terminator's chassis. Right now she was very content to have Cammy want her.

Bob watched in the rear view mirror but said nothing. It was pleasing just to watch them share silently with their closeness. It made him wonder what it was like. He saw all the couples do it. What was different here was Cammy and Sheila were both Terminators, one of them wasn't human. Maybe it was like Savannah said, Terminators were more like 'mechanical humans', at least the female ones.

He still felt the desire to be close to someone. To just share their company. It was a thought he never experienced in the beginning. He was a long way from the beginning now.

Bob saw they approached the target area. He needed to refocus and stay alert. He did a 'drive by' without slowing a block over from the location. He found an inconspicuous spot to park the vehicle.

At the location they were given, there were several shabby looking buildings and not much traffic, the place looked run down and derelict. It clearly wasn't the good part of town. He knew there would be several reasons for it. In the rundown areas, there were always abandoned buildings. Some of them could be leased or rented for next to nothing. Others could simply be occupied. It didn't take too much effort to bypass the electrical junction box and hook up directly to the power line, or turn the water back on from the valve near the street.

He took another moment to look at Sheila and Cammy. He would really like to be in either one of their places. He wondered what it was like to share with another individual, even if all they did was rest their head on the other shoulder. He needed to refocus.

"We're here." Bob said.

Cammy lifted her head off Sheila's shoulder and looked around. She was very unimpressed with the way the location looked.

"It looks like nothing." Cammy said. "This place is ugly."

Sheila knew the intel was good. She did enough 'interrogations' to know when the person spoke the truth. She could see it in their eyes. Their eyes always pleaded to keep what was left. It usually wasn't much.

"He told me the truth." Sheila said. "You scanned him as well when you held him. Something happened at this location with one of the big rigs."

Bob didn't like what he witnessed in the old granite quarry. He wasn't usually close to such aggressiveness. It was only when they took down Scavengers in the future he witnessed the after effects of what was done in those camps.

Cammy continued to look around the area.

"I still see nothing." Cammy said.

Bob looked at the area. There were many failed businesses. They didn't know what anything was when they looked at it. The Skynet forces would conceal whatever they did. They wouldn't want anyone to snoop around or ask questions. If anyone did, they were usually properly terminated.

"We need to use caution." Bob said. "It's the whole point for them to be hidden. They don't want to attract attention. There are a lot of abandoned office and factory buildings for them to use."

Sheila checked with John Henry on the drones available to them.

"We still have two drones at our disposal to use." Sheila said.

Bob didn't think it would be a quick response. Certain precautions needed to be taken during the daytime for obvious reasons.

John Henry already took some precautions.

"It's daylight now." Bob said. "They landed in a secluded location before sunrise. If we need them, they will come."

Sheila picked up on his last word and decided to run with it. It was in her nature to be 'crude'. It made her feel better to spark a little 'controversy'.

"Now that sounds like a plan." Sheila said as she winked at Cammy. "I like a man of action. I actually like anyone of action. Things never get done thinking about them."

Cammy was happy to see Sheila a little more like her normal self. It made her feel more like her normal self too. She wondered what Savannah was up to. She would have liked John to 'plow' Savannah in the back of the van as they drove so Cameron could watch it. She bet it would have ground her gears some. She looked around some more. She needed to refocus.

Bob didn't want to hear the sexual banter. It wasn't something he partook in. He often did wonder what it would be like to be with a female. Females seemed to be what both males and females wanted to be with. He witnessed plenty of sex acts over the years. It seemed sexual encounters with males and females lasted from thirty seconds to several minutes. The males were usually satisfied. The females usually weren't.

Jesse told each of the male Terminators if they ever wanted to 'try it' one time, she would accommodate them. She said they needed to use the level of a human male for the first time when they tried it. She said the second time, they could act as the cyborgs they were, and really give it to her. It was a very tempting offer every male Terminator thought about. What could it hurt to give it a try? If it was what everyone wanted, what was the big deal? No really, what was the big deal?

Cameron told the male Terminators if they touched any of the Resistance females, either human or cyborgs, they would be made an example of and terminated. He didn't need to hear it or be tempted anymore than he already was.

"Don't start." Bob said.

Sheila knew how to 'dance' around issues when they arose. She turned it around on Bob.

"Someone has a 'dirty mind'." Sheila said. "I didn't say what you thought. Whatever you thought, happened in your own mind."

Bob was no stranger to the word games. He knew what Sheila said made him think what he did. He could play word games too.

"Maybe I didn't think what you thought I thought." Bob said. "You're not River."

Sheila continued to play along. She knew Cammy and anyone who shared her DNA looked almost exactly like River.

"No, but she's 'close enough'." Sheila said as she touched Cammy.

Cammy was aware she could 'play' quite a cast of 'characters'. She was no stranger to any of them. 'Cameron' was the most popular one. It was easy to do for her since they ran the same program. She was 'Cameron'. River and Young Allison were also popular.

"I'm 'close enough' to a few individuals." Cammy said. "Tell me who you want, I'll see what I can do."

Sheila asked Cammy to play all of them in the past. Eight years was a long time for a Terminator since they didn't need to sleep. She liked whoever Cammy played. She eventually just wanted Cammy to be herself. It was something they both wanted from each other. They just wanted them to be themselves. They didn't need 'others' or 'games'. There was no need to get into the details.

"Damn, straight." Sheila said.

Bob wanted to get the job done. He knew how important it was to John.

"Quiet." Bob said.

Sheila didn't want Bob to be upset.

"Relax, love." Sheila said. "I don't see anything."

Bob was a little on edge with some of his earlier thoughts. He still thought about what Jesse said every time he looked at Sheila now. His sheath responded in ways it normally didn't. He better understood why John often needed to 'adjust' himself. Situations seemed to develop where there wasn't always control over what occurred. He needed to refocus. He looked over the area where they were told to look.

"It's the whole point." Bob said again. "They don't want us to see anything. We need to look harder. We need to look for what's hidden."

Cammy was a little more bothered about what occurred in the latest conversation. She thought about what Sheila just said. It bothered her. She wanted to be 'seen' as who she was, as Cammy.

She only allowed Savannah to call her 'Cameron' during those special moments of pleasure and fulfillment. The others were just for fun.

Cammy felt a little uptight. She felt the need to 'get away from it all'. A compulsion to 'leave' overcame her. She figured it was another bad trait she inherited from Cameron. She was sure all of her bad traits and problems were inherited from Cameron. Where else would they come from?

"I'm going to look around." Cammy said as she abruptly exited the SUV.

Sheila was caught off guard. She was replaying the files of the times she shared with Cammy in the past. There were a lot of them. Based upon the way the neighborhood looked, she didn't want Cammy to go off on her own. There was bound to be some trouble with some of the people they might run into.

"Wait." Sheila said.

Cammy was already out.

Bob reached back and stopped Sheila from following her. He wanted to see what developed.

"This isn't a good part of town." Bob said. "We'll need to watch her. She can take care of herself. We need to see how anyone interacts with her. Remember, she looks like 'Cameron' and 'Future Allison' if anyone from Cameron's future sees her."

Sheila mulled over some of the possibilities. Cammy was way too good looking to be out on any of the side streets. The only females who populated this part of town were used up drug abusers who turned tricks for drugs. The majority of them would be homeless and subjected to a lot of abuse, from a lot of different people.

"I don't think she'll get 'jumped'." Sheila said. "Then again, it might do her some good."

Sheila's statement sounded absurd to Bob.

"How is that possible?" Bob asked. "It sounds like a bad thing no matter how you look at it. They're most likely would be several violent terminations. It's broad daylight right now. It could generate a lot of negative attention for what we're trying to do."

Sheila and Cammy needed to tone down their responses when they were in the past. They needed to be careful with any terminations which popped up. They could terminate the wrong person and change something in the future, which was the present for them. Even people who 'needed a haircut and a good beating' could only be dealt with carefully. It didn't take much to provoke someone. Their 'natural response' to some form of aggression was to equal it, and return it tenfold.

"Our combat skills have been a little underused." Sheila said. "We needed to be careful with anyone who interacted negatively with us."

Sheila was afraid she may have said too much. No one knew of their 'adventure' into the past but a few. She hoped Bob didn't press her on it. It was something both Cameron and CamNet tried to keep strict control of. Most of their files were locked down and firewalled where they couldn't access them. It was so their past actions wouldn't influence whatever else might happen going forward when others went to the past.

Bob thought they were all in perfect form from what he saw.

"You all did a good job the last few days." Bob said. "You're no different than you always were."

Bob wondered what Sheila actually referred to. It would require further investigation. He would look into it. He wasn't sure if it was something Cameron sanctioned, or if it was some rogue operation. Since it involved Cammy, maybe Savannah was involved or approved the mission. If Savannah was involved, he would look no further. Savannah was trusted by all beyond question.

Cameron told all of the Terminators Savannah always knew best, and her decisions would always be the correct ones. Savannah would know what to do and her instructions were always to be followed, even over hers or CamNet's.

Cammy was tired of waiting. She was a little steamed about what Sheila said. She hadn't seen a lot of combat action over the last few years in the past. She did know they were always certain individuals who needed a little 're-education'. Those involved in the 'Underworld' also required a little extra 'attention'.

She wanted to hit the target and move on to the next one. There was still several locations they needed to check out along with the other team. The 'Cameron' in her wanted action. To think of Savannah and her 'special moments' reaffirmed she was 'Cameron'. Maybe she would go inside the building herself and look around. It's what Cameron would do.

Cammy knew it was really Cameron who bothered her. Cameron was ready to 'claim' Savannah and push her away. She knew Cameron 'provided' Sheila to her as a consolation. It worked too, at least stuck in the past it worked. Now she was back and Savannah was more desirable than ever. Ally and Sheila loved each other, even if they'd never admit it. She was an intruder into their relationship. It didn't make her feel good. Ally was supposed to go with Sheila for the time period into the past. Cameron decided to 'punish' her for some slight infraction. The punishment was to be away from Savannah for the time period. In any respect, eight years was a long time.

Then there was John. He was ready to 'claim' Savannah as well. Cameron pushed long enough and hard enough on him to wake him up as to his true destiny. She was in Cameron's future. She saw what the future held and what the future offered. It wasn't her.

Maybe she could become the guardian of Summer, or Jan. There was also Sarah and Riley to think about. Derek and Kyle were there as well. Each one of them could use a Terminator to be around them all of the time.

There were so many things to worry about.

She was deeply caught up in thought. There was some movement off to her side.

"Are you lost?" The first man asked.

Cammy was startled. She hadn't detected anyone yet.

"What?" Cammy asked, surprised.

Cammy looked around. Where was she? It wasn't the same location she left from earlier. She didn't think she went very far, but evidently she did.

"Are you OK?" The second man asked.

"It's too early to be drunk, unless you're on drugs." The first man said.

"Maybe she is looking for a 'good time'." The second man said.

"This is a decent girl." The first man said. "Watch your mouth."

"Are you going to kick my butt?" The second man asked.

"If I have too I will." The first man said. "It won't be the first time. You leave her alone. This is a respectable girl. Look at her. She's not 'trash'. She's not the type of female who would ever associate with the people around here."

"Are you referring to me?" The second man asked.

"If the shoe fits…." The first man said.

"Hey!" The second man said.

Cammy could see the situation was tense. The men seemed to be together, but they were a powder keg at times. Her presence seemed to initiate some type of combative response between both of them. Perhaps even in the bad part of town they were still a spark of good left in some of the individuals. Exactly how long the spark would last was unknown. She wanted to diffuse the situation. She was there to gather information. Neither of the two men looked as if they were Grays.

"I'm sorry." Cammy said. "I didn't mean to cause trouble for you. I was looking for someone."

Both of the men looked around the area they were in.

"Here?" The first man asked.

Cammy was aware street people knew all the ins and outs around where they 'lived'. They would know what doors were unlocked when no one was around. They would also know friction spots. There was always a lot of negative interaction with some local individuals.

"Actually it's in those buildings over there." Cammy said. "I must have walked past them. I was so worried. There's a lot on my mind."

"Those people are trouble." The second man said.

"Believe me, if he thinks so, they are." The first man said.

"Hey!" The second man said.

Cammy wondered if the two men would end up in a fight soon. There seemed to be a lot of unnecessary abrasiveness. She hoped to gain a little more information.

"What did they do?" Cammy asked.

"They keep trying to recruit some of the 'down and out', especially Veterans, like us." The first man said.

It sounded like a 'Gray recruiting center'. They encountered a lot of 'contract employees' working for Skynet. The Resistance still considered them as 'Grays'. It didn't take long for any new recruits to figure out who they were working for was up to no good. If they stayed on, they were a collaborator and would suffer the same fate as their Masters.

"What do they need people for?" Cammy asked. "Who are they?"

"They're some kind of fanatics or cult group." The second man said.

"Some of our 'associates' have turned up dead or missing, the ones who were recruited." The first man said. "Anyone who goes there is never seen again if they leave there."

"They got some mean looking dudes too." The second man said.

The first man looked over Cammy's shoulder.

"Wow!" The first man said. "Look at her."

Cammy looked back over her shoulder.

Sheila approached them rapidly.

Cammy wanted to set the record straight and give the men less to think about, well, as far as they'd be concerned.

"She's my girlfriend." Cammy said.

The revelation seemed to spark both men's fancy.

"Can I ask if it's girlfriend - girl friend, or girlfriend - lover?" The second man asked.

Cammy felt no shame for her feelings. Why would she? She could love whoever she wanted.

"It's both." Cammy said. "We share everything."

Sheila walked up. She looked ready for combat. She eyed the two men with disdain.

"Who are these blokes?" Sheila asked.

Cammy could tell Sheila felt protective of her.

"Her accent is just as hot as she is." The second man said.

Sheila moved so a nipple ring popped out along with what it was attached to.

Both of the men's eyes went wide open.

Cammy quickly stepped in.

"Thanks." Sheila said as Cammy readjusted her top for her.

Sheila knew the two men would be off guard now. They'd be dreaming of 'other things'.

Another figure approached from behind them.

"Holy Crap!" The first man said. "It's one of THEM."

It was Bob.

Bob came from the other direction opposite of where Sheila arrived from. They wanted to make sure the 'threat' was contained if it turned out to be a problem.

Sheila didn't want any trouble.

"Relax, love." Sheila said quickly.

Cammy saw the two men become alarmed when they spotted Bob.

"He is with us." Cammy said.

"No worries, fellas." Sheila said.

Cammy wanted a good excuse for being there and asking questions.

"We're looking for his 'brother'." Cammy said.

The two men looked nervous.

"There are a few dudes who remind us of him inside those buildings." The first man said. "They're built like him anyway."

Bob looked down at his chassis. He was built.

Cammy hoped for some 'inside information'.

"We think they have his brother." Cammy said. "Can you help us get him back?"

Sheila wanted to butter them up some. She came to the same conclusion Cammy did. It wasn't uncommon for them to use street people for information about drug dealers, or the sex trade, on Cameron's 'off the books' operations.

"A couple of 'fine gentlemen' like you two probably know all the 'ins and outs' around here." Sheila said.

It was clear these two men were borderline Scavenger material, but currently more like 'tunnel rats'.

"We do." The second man said. "We don't go around there any more."

Based on the satellite photos Bob viewed, he drew a diagram in the dirt with a stick.

"Show us." Bob said.

It seemed to terrify the men even more when they heard Bob speak.

"What's in it for us?" The second man asked.

Bob spoke without thinking it through. He didn't like the look of the two men. He said what he currently felt.

"You get to live." Bob said. "If you help us."

The men looked like they wanted to run.

Sheila wanted to ease their minds some. The spots of dried blood on Bob's clothing didn't help either.

"He's just fooling about." Sheila said. "He is like a big Koala Bear."

Cammy wanted to put it in more common friendlier terms.

"She means a Teddy Bear." Cammy quickly added.

Sheila smiled at the two men.

"Show him what he wants to know." Sheila said. "It'll make all of us happy."

She moved just right again. The other nipple ring was now visible along with everything else.

Cammy looked around and re-orientated herself as to where she was. She was very inattentive. She knew it was Cameron's fault. If she wouldn't have been thinking about all the things Cameron was going to do, she would have paid better attention to where she was. Instead she 'wanted to get away from it all'. She knew it was another flaw of Cameron's. There didn't seem to be a shortage of them.

While Bob and Sheila questioned the men, she slipped away and went back to the SUV. She retrieved some MRE packets they kept in the 'company cars'. She took some cash out of her pocket.

Cammy returned just as the 'briefing' finished up.

"Did you get everything?" Cammy asked.

Bob clearly didn't care for the two men. They provided him with enough details to formulate an entry plan. If the information proved to be correct, he wouldn't need to come back and terminate them. He wanted to tell them the same thing but he could see Sheila and Cammy didn't want him to. He thought when someone was given fair warning of the consequences, if they failed to deliver, or provided incorrect information, they would suffer the consequences they were told would occur.

"Affirmative…." Bob said.

Cammy knew Bob was ready to terminate the two men.

"We don't have very much." Cammy said. "We appreciate your help. We were going to have these for lunch later on. You can have them instead since you helped us."

She gave them each an MRE packet.

Both men looked a little astounded. They weren't used to anyone giving them anything, especially just for some information.

"Thanks." They both said.

"I used to hate these, now it is like a steak dinner to have one." The first man said.

"I agree." The second man said.

Cammy went over to Bob and reached in his pocket. She came out with two 'Twenties'. She actually held them in her hand the whole time but wanted it to look like Bob carried their money. It was doubtful anyone would try to take anything from him.

The men's eyes were as wide as saucers.

"Is it for us?" The first man asked.

Cammy hoped they would leave peaceably. She didn't want a public disturbance.

"We don't have much." Cammy said. "You fellas take off and have a good time. We need to find his brother. We don't want there to be any trouble when we go asking. Maybe it would be better if you two were elsewhere. You don't want to make any enemies if they see you around."

The two men looked at Bob, Sheila, Cammy, and then at each other.

Cammy held a Twenty out for each of them.

They both started to take them. Cammy held them firm. She was sure there would be gunfire soon. They didn't need any witnesses. She wanted to reaffirm the last part of her previous statement.

"You need to leave here for now." Cammy said firmly.

"Consider us gone." The second man said.

Cammy released the two Twenties.

The men each took one. One was a little more hesitant than the other.

"Thanks." They both said again and hurried away.

Bob looked at the two men with disgust.

"We should have terminated them." Bob said. "They will become Scavengers."

Cammy felt the one man was just down on his luck. She saw there was still some 'good' in him.

"One may, the other won't." Cammy said. "It's my 'observation'. If the circumstances were different and Savannah was here, she would want to assist him."

Cammy went out with Cameron and Savannah sometimes when Cameron tried to help some of the homeless. Cameron tried to prevent Scavengers. It was an idea supported by Savannah. They hoped to set a few lives straight and maybe there would be a few less Scavengers in a Skynet future. They might even join the Resistance in the future.

She knew the biggest problem was drugs. Once someone started using narcotics, things usually rapidly escalated. From her experience, the person's life was over. it would just take some time for them to overdose or die from something else related.

Sheila was anxious to get things started. They definitely came up with a solid lead. Cammy missed some of the details.

"Let's get to work here." Sheila said. "Here's what we know."

They filled Cammy in on all the details.

Bob was used to the way John handled things.

"We should wait until dark and have drone support." Bob said.

Cammy wanted action. She was still wound up tight. It was still early in the morning.

"I'm tired of waiting." Cammy said.

Sheila looked down at her nearly topless form.

"We don't have our body armor." Sheila said. "I don't want to end up like I've seen Cameron."

Cammy didn't see it as a big deal. Cameron was perfect again.

"Everything will regenerate…." Cammy said. "I was able to experience some of it 'recently', even though it seems like a long time ago."

Sheila knew Cammy referred to 'some things' she did to her sheath. She wasn't so sure about everything on Cammy regenerating. She knew Cameron was without a nipple for months once. It was from repeated damage in the same location multiple times with complete sheath loss in the area before everything could regenerate. It took new DNA from Allison to fix it.

Cammy wanted to get things started. She didn't want Sheila to worry. There were some suggestions she could make. She made them for more than one reason.

"I'll trade anything on my sheath for yours which is damaged." Cammy said. "I've given up sections of my sheath to Cameron before to speed her recovery. I will gladly do the same thing for you."

Bob hoped Cammy was talking to Sheila.

Sheila couldn't help but feel guilty about some of the 'modifications' she made to Cammy's sheath. She noticed Bob looked a little uneasy.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

Silver Lining

We look all around
For the Silver Lining
Nothing can be heard
Beyond our own whining

All of life is empty and dull
Gone are things once shining
Our burdened mind into overload
Impossible thoughts combining

Each second soon gone forever
Our bodies and minds declining
Our bleeding hearts calling
For our true lover pining

Even alone and outside
Life's drudge is confining
Seeking impossible perfection
Our mind keeps redesigning

Finding never ending excuses
Character dissected like strip mining
Does it take a neon sign
To see the Silver Lining

Nobody