Chapter 1165

You Can Watch

Cameron led the team towards one of the rear elevators. It opened as they approached. John and her entered first, followed by Sarah and Kyle. As soon as Riley and Derek entered, the door immediately closed.

CamNet took it upon herself to make sure whenever they moved around the ship, there was always an elevator waiting for them. It would only open for them and not stop on any other floors. Whoever was in the Control Center would also do the same thing.

The six Resistance fighters were in the elevator headed down to the main dining room. The elevator quickly reached Deck Five.

The elevator door opened. Cameron made a quick visual sweep of the area and then moved forward. Everything looked clear. She hadn't expected it to look any other way. It was just part of her natural reaction to assess the threat level of any particular area.

Cameron and John stepped out. Sarah and Kyle came out next. They were followed by Riley and Derek.

John noticed Cameron's caution but didn't want to address it. He knew it was in her programming. He looked around to see if any of the other Metal girls were around watching them or in the stairwell. None of them were spotted. At least the precaution was relaxed some. Then again, they may be trying harder to stay out of sight.

He didn't want to make Cameron or any of the other Terminators stress out over something so insignificant. If they were going to keep an eye on them, then they were going to keep an eye on them.

John could see Sarah look around with awe as she took in the splendor.

Sarah looked around at the main dining room entrance. They were still in the hallway. She could certainly recognize elegance when she saw it.

"This is beautiful." Sarah said.

John wanted her to enter the main dining room for some real beauty.

"Wait until you go inside." John said. "I guarantee you're going to like it even more."

Sarah could hardly wait. It was all very exciting to her. She worked in a lot of eating establishments over the years. Most of them weren't for a very long duration. Many of them were 'hole in the wall' eating establishments.

Cameron noticed Riley looked a little uneasy. She wondered if maybe she was starting to get seasick. She didn't want any problems. She went over to scan Riley.

Riley could see Cameron was headed in her direction.

Cameron smiled at Riley and touched her neck.

"Is everything all right, Riley?" Cameron asked. "Do you feel sick?"

Riley appreciated Cameron's concern. She knew it was genuine. She didn't want to make a big deal about anything in front of the others.

"I'm fine. It's something else." Riley said. "I need to call Vanna real quick. I want to check on Precious. I don't want It to seem like I'm bothering her too much."

John was aware of the 'no phone' policy in the main dining room. There was a sign on each side of the door. They still needed to wait a few minutes until the doors opened. It seemed like a good time for Riley to take care of her business now.

"Do it now before we go in." John said. "It'll attract attention and draw scrutiny if you do it in there."

Derek and Riley moved off to the side. They were now in the small lounge area where Gail waited earlier at lunch time.

Behind the closed glass doors leading into the main dining room, the others could see a flurry of activity. There were waiters and assistant waiters rapidly moving around making sure everything was perfect.

Cameron could see the anticipation the rest of the group exhibited as they watched them make the final preparations. She knew their group was early. There would be other guests arriving soon. There were several other options open to them. It gave them all a little time to look at the dinner menu. It was posted behind glass near the elevators.

"We can wait here and go in this way, or we can use the employee's entrance." Cameron said. "Our key cards give us 'all access' to any part of the ship."

John looked around the area of the four elevators. He didn't want to draw any unnecessary attention to their group with the dining room staff either. It looked like where they were at was going to be good enough. It didn't look like a problem to him as far as going in the main entrance. He wanted to run everything by Cameron first.

"We're the first ones here." John said. "I don't think it will be a problem where we're at currently."

John thought back to earlier in the day when it was lunchtime. He remembered there were quite a few guests waiting to go in for lunch. He assumed it would be even more for dinner. They would be in the front of the line when one formed. He figured one of the reasons Cameron wanted to do it was so the other patrons only could look at their backs and not scrutinize their faces.

Kyle didn't see anything wrong with where they currently waited. He thought everything around them was fancy. It looked like it would be nice to go through the main entrance. He thought Sarah would like to make a grand entrance and go in through the front.

"I think Sarah would like to go in this way." Kyle said. "I think it will add to the experience if we do it as intended."

Sarah gave Kyle a small frown. It was what she wanted. She just didn't want it said.

"I didn't say anything." Sarah said.

Kyle noticed the look of discord on Sarah's face. He didn't want to create a problem.

"I'd like to go in the main entrance as well." Kyle said. "We can think about other options for another time."

Sarah smiled at Kyle.

"I do think it would be nice to go in this way once for the full experience." Sarah said. "It will at least give us a perspective to compare things to if any other options are chosen later."

Sarah would like to see things the way other people got to see things sometimes. Not everything they did was 'above board'. A lot of it was done in the shadows. She knew she was responsible for quite a few questionable things. Some of them she didn't want to think about. It would be nice to feel what normal was like, even if it was for a short time.

She wasn't even sure what normal was. No matter how hard she tried to make things normal for John when he was growing up, they always seem to turn out anything but normal. She was pretty sure there was nothing normal about her life since the night Future Kyle saved her from the Terminator.

When she tried to think about what was normal. She tried not to think about what was normal. She knew she was a threat to Charlie and made her move to get away from him to protect him. The Terminator was able to track them down a very short time after they made their move. If she would have stayed with Charlie, the Terminator would have found her soon enough where they were in Nebraska. Charlie most likely would have been killed in 1999 instead of when he was. Maybe he got an extra decade of life out of it. It was still her association with him which got him killed. Would anybody think any of what happened was normal?

Cameron wondered if maybe she should have CamNet call the dining room as the Captain to make sure it opened on time. She might want to have a personal conversation with the Maître d' off to the side for any future visits to the main dining room. There would be several options available to her to gain his influence. She could use her position as the daughter of the owner of the cruise line, or she could give him a generous tip in advance. She could also use both of those options. She didn't want to threaten him with termination as long as other options were available.

"We'll wait here then." Cameron said. "There won't be any problems."

Cameron looked to see where Derek and Riley were. She liked to see Riley's concern for Precious and Derek's support for her. She also noted how beautiful Riley looked in her blue dress. She looked at John and could tell he tried not to look at Riley as they waited. She hoped it would spur his interest in other females rather than in Riley herself. She knew once he started any type of sexual relationship with a human female again, he would want more.

Whoever it was, she wanted them to be a voluntary participant. She didn't want to make anyone feel like it was their obligation or duty to do, or because it was what she wanted done. She would rather leave things the way they were now than do those other things to any female.

John noticed Cameron glanced at him from time to time. He tried not to look in Riley's direction. He tried to concentrate his attention on Kyle, Sarah, and Cameron. He still couldn't help those thoughts which crept into his mind about his mother 'visiting him' in his bedroom as he looked at her. Maybe it would have saved everyone a lot of grief if they were in a sexual relationship when he was younger. He wouldn't have needed to look elsewhere.

He glanced over at Kyle. Kyle nodded and smiled at him. He couldn't help but feel a little guilty. Wait. Why did he just think those same thoughts again? He glanced over at Riley and noticed Cameron look at him. He hoped they would open the door soon and let them inside. He really needed a change of 'scenery'. He could look around the inside of the dining room, or at the menu, the food menu. It seemed somehow he was fixated on the 'female menu'.

Cameron watched John check Riley out again. She needed to remind herself they were on their honeymoon cruise. She planned to give John the best honeymoon ever. She reminded herself Riley wasn't Future Riley.

She glanced around the waiting area again. There were no threats detected.

Cameron looked at Riley and smiled.

Moments ago:

Derek and Riley were off to the side.

Riley looked at Derek with some apprehension.

"I hate to keep calling." Riley said. "I feel like they'll think I don't trust them."

Derek didn't want it to become an issue. He was concerned too and understood Riley's concern. He felt Precious was in good hands. There was no doubt in his mind Vanna and Allison would protect Riley no matter what.

"If there is a problem, they'll contact us." Derek said. "We have a direct satellite hook up from the ship for our communications in the ship-borne Control Center. We will have instant communication anytime we need it with the Resistance base."

Riley did know if there was a problem Samantha would contact her. She took Samantha off to the side before she left and made her promise to have her notified immediately if there was any kind of problem related to Precious. She still felt a certain amount of apprehension. She was never away from Precious for this long before. The longest she was away from Precious before was when she went to see the specialist as to why she was unable to lactate very much. She didn't want to think about the results of the visit. Her problems stemmed from lack of proper nutrition growing up. It wasn't her fault, it was Skynet's fault. She would just try to keep things simple.

"It will be the last time today." Riley said. "I'll wait until tomorrow before I call again."

Derek understood Riley's concerns. He wanted her to maintain a good peace of mind.

"Tomorrow you can call before we get off to look around Ensenada." Derek said. "If it is more than what you want to deal with, we can always go back. Cameron said there would be transportation available in every port we went to if there was an issue."

Riley didn't want to do what Derek indicated. It would probably cause a major disruption with the others on the ship. She glanced over at the others waiting near the dining room entrance. She wanted to get things taken care of and wrapped up as soon as possible.

"I think we're good for the next few days." Riley said. "We won't need to disrupt anything for the others. I'll make the call quick."

Riley noticed Cameron check her out and then look at John. She hadn't seen him, but she was sure he checked her out as well. She noticed it several times on the way to the main dining room. It started as soon as she came out of the Honeymoon Suite with Derek. She did notice him look at his mother multiple times as well. Maybe it was something she shouldn't think about.

'Damn Bitch.' Riley thought.

Her thoughts weren't directed at Cameron. They were directed at another future version of herself. They were directed at Future Riley.

Riley really hated Future Riley.

Cameron looked back at Riley and smiled.

'I love her.' Riley thought.

Riley returned Cameron's smile. She needed to make her phone call.

Vanna just changed Precious when there was a soft knock at the door.

The door opened and a beautiful head peeked inside.

Vanna saw who it was and knew what she really wanted to see. She knew she saw plenty already.

"There's no free show today." Vanna said. "Hello, Jan."

Allison suppressed a giggle at Vanna's first response. She was well acquainted with what the younger girls liked to do at the Young residence as well. It was really no different than what she witnessed growing up in the tunnels and bunkers in the Wastelands. The main difference was all of the females in the present, were willing participants. The same thing couldn't be said about the past, the future.

"Hi, Jan." Allison said.

Jan felt a little defensive. She did spy on them whenever she could.

"Hello, Vanna. Hi, Allison." Jan said. "I did knock first. I've only ever seen a little bit."

Jan wanted to point out the doors were seldom closed tight. She didn't want to mention it and have the doors closed tight in the future. She still liked to watch the girls share with each other.

Vanna pushed it a little more in good humor.

"You mean each time." Vanna said. "I don't think there isn't anything you haven't seen at some point."

Allison giggled. She didn't think it was a big deal. She didn't want Jan to feel self-conscious. She figured a little confession wouldn't hurt.

"Girls will be girls." Allison said. "I did it too. We all did it. Don't worry about it."

Jan wanted to offer some justification. She was going to mention Cameron, her sister-in-law, told her it never hurt to see what was going on to create the sounds. She wasn't exactly sure if Cameron was her sister-in-law. She probably figured they were more than a few technicalities involved. She doubted a machine could be legally married to a human being. It seemed like a discussion best left for some other time, or not at all.

"Cameron told me it's OK to be curious." Jan said.

Vanna and Allison still both did it when they got the chance.

"I'm sure she did." Vanna said. "We're still curious too. I don't mind a little refresher every now and then when I can take a peek."

Allison laughed.

"It's true." Allison said. "We both still watch whoever we can."

Jan smiled. She knew the girls were being honest. She really didn't want to get into the subject too deeply. She didn't want them to ask about her internet usage. She watched plenty on the internet. The main thing she noticed was the reaction of the females she watched with her own eyes, as opposed to most of those on the internet. Things just weren't the same as far as the response went, even if the actions which produced them were the same. She was sure most of it was dramatic acting for the camera. She was ready for a subject change.

"Can I see Precious?" Jan asked.

Vanna figured it was why Jan was really there. There could be something else as well.

"Do you want to hold her?" Vanna asked. "She's awake now."

Jan really wanted to hold Precious. Her mother often discouraged her from it. She wasn't really sure why. She wondered if her mother was worried it would make her want to have one. It certainly wasn't on the top of her to-do list.

"Can I?" Jan asked.

Vanna wanted to make sure things were as safe for Precious as possible.

"Have a seat." Vanna said.

Jan sat in a chair.

Vanna handed Precious to her.

Jan's face lit up with a big smile.

"Thank you. She's so pretty." Jan said.

Jan started to speak softly to Precious.

Vanna's phone rang. She looked at it and turned to Allison.

"It's Riley." Vanna said.

Allison understood the concern. She didn't want there to be any problems for anyone.

"Take it. She's worried about being away." Allison said.

Allison moved over to where Jan and Precious were.

Vanna answered her phone.

"Hi, Riley." Vanna said.

Riley felt a certain amount of guilt because she called again. It hadn't been too long since she called previously. It was an inner compulsion she felt to check up on her baby. In reality they were only gone a few hours.

"Hi, Vanna." Riley said. "I just wanted to check in to see how everything was. I hate to keep bothering you. I'm sorry."

Vanna glanced over at Precious. Jan still spoke softly with her.

"Everything's fine." Vanna said. "Is Derek there?"

Riley wondered if Vanna needed to tell him something.

"Yes. Do you want to talk to him?" Riley asked.

Vanna was afraid she may have caused Riley some unnecessary worry. She wanted to make her position clear.

"No. If it's clear and you want to, you can put your phone on speaker phone mode. Precious is awake. You can both talk to her and see her." Vanna said. "Not too loud though."

Vanna headed over to Precious with her phone.

Once the potential threats were identified, Young Allison gave Anna specific instructions for the two teams of Terminators backing up Dan and Frank. One team was Al and Ed. The other team was Ken and Lou. Tom and Steve arrived on the scene a few minutes ago and now backed up Cammy's team.

"Two of the teams are ready for action." Anna reported. "They've acquired alternate transportation as you requested. It appears the vehicles will do what you want done with ease."

Young Allison wanted to avoid using a missile from a drone, but she would if it was warranted. She wanted a local 'fix' with what was available.

"Does the third team have the LAW rockets ready?" Young Allison asked.

Anna verified the LAW rockets were ready to be armed.

"They do." Anna said. "Everything will be ready in a moment's notice."

Young Allison wanted to make sure the teams were protected and everyone was on the same page. She made it clear what she wanted done. She also made it clear she would conduct a drone missile strike if necessary.

"The missile strike is still on if either of the two vehicles gets within two blocks of Cammy's team or Dan's team." Young Allison said. "We aren't going to take any chances. We don't think they are, but it is possible they could be Fanatics in disguise. They carry their own explosives with them."

John Henry contacted CamNet and Anna to express his concerns. He wanted to avoid a missile strike in the city if at all possible. It was something John wouldn't be willing to do as long as it was still light.

"John Henry doesn't agree to a missile strike." Anna said. "At least until it's darker."

Young Allison wasn't going to back down. She came up with a few other plans they might be able to use instead of the missile strike. If the missile strike was necessary, she wanted it to happen. She was going to wait until it was darker, she wouldn't hesitate to move one drone into gun range.

"I don't think we have long to wait." Young Allison said. "I've tried to provide an alternative to the use of a drone."

Anna was a little surprised at Young Allison's contingency plan. She thought it showed ingenuity and was workable. She wasn't the only one who liked it.

"John Henry liked the other plan." Anna said.

Young Allison felt the whole episode seemed well orchestrated to 'play' them. There may still be an unknown third party to everything which occurred around the port facility. She really hoped they would be able to identify them. Maybe if they drew first blood, they could get someone to run. They wouldn't know for sure if they were targeted or not and might end up as the next casualty once the action started.

"There's still someone behind all this." Young Allison said. "This isn't all random."

Anna believed there were at least three things in play currently. The homeless men and the possible junkie may actually be connected. The two vehicles which stalked them were another unknown. They may or may not be connected with each other.

"It does all seem very coincidental." Anna said.

Young Allison felt a 'deeper presence' involved. She felt she knew where the connection actually originated. It was based on the type of initial attack the team faced last week.

"I think we were being probed." Young Allison said. "I believe whoever sent the sniper a week ago is behind this."

Young Allison thought there was a specific connection. The idea was in her head nonstop now. It sent out a lot of alarms.

"We seemed to have wiped out one group of Grays and the Syndicate force in the initial attack." Anna said.

If they did, it didn't seem to be all the players.

"Who is the third group in all of this?" Young Allison asked. "Who's behind the homeless men? Who was behind the man on the pay phone? Who's behind the two vehicles currently stalking the men on the ground?"

Anna could think of several variations of the 'normal players'.

"It can be another group of Grays, the Fanatics, or the anti-Metal faction." Anna said.

It always seemed to get more complicated with the more people they killed, not less complicated or involved. It always seemed the more they found out, the less they actually knew.

"We've experienced run-ins with all of them." Young Allison said. "I don't think the Syndicate will be a problem anymore."

Young Allison was pleased with her decision to pit the Cartel against the Syndicate. Both groups would end up as Scavengers or Grays in a Skynet dominated future. A lot of them would now be dead before it ever happened. She didn't think one could grow good crop with bad seed.

It was really an extension of Cameron's efforts to pit street gangs against each other, and against drug lords and drug dealers. It was all the 'riff raff' and scum. Young Allison just took it up a notch and went after billions of funds at a time, instead of only millions.

Cameron acted on a personal level. Young Allison used CamNet and everything CamNet could control to carry out her bidding. It was on a personal level too. The Syndicate shouldn't have gone after the Metal girls. They shouldn't have angered her.

Anna was updated by the various teams. Everything was as Young Allison wanted it.

"Everything's ready to go." Anna said.

Young Allison was ready with a massive response if necessary. She made sure there would be a few surprises in store against the enemy if they were needed.

"I want to protect our teams." Young Allison said. "When we hit, we're going to hit hard."

Young Allison wanted to give Savannah as much help as she could. It bothered her more and more because she was protected in a bunker and Savannah was the one who faced the threats. Cameron trained her for her whole known life how to fight to win. She was ready to employ those skills.

She didn't like being on the sidelines. Whoever was trying to play them, was about to have the tables turned rather quickly in a very short while. She wanted a piece of the action.

Cammy's team received all the information from John Henry about what should happen.

Cam wanted to play a bigger part. She wanted to be more directly involved in the operation.

"So what are we supposed to do at this point?" Cam asked.

Savannah felt it was out of their hands right now. They needed to see what action was going to be taken on the part of any of the others involved in the operation.

"I think it all depends on the blue car and the brown van." Savannah said.

The 'Cameron' in Cam really showed on this operation. She was ready for some action and didn't mind getting her hands dirty. She didn't like the way things played out so far. She wanted to move things along.

"I want to put the grab on the guy we're watching." Cam said. "I think I can beat some answers out of him."

Cammy looked over at Savannah. She knew Savannah wanted both Cam and her to sit tight for now.

"It's too risky at this time." Cammy said. "We don't want to provoke an incident or trigger some type of ambush or attack directed at us."

Savannah checked to make sure everyone wore their vest. She was pretty sure they're going to see action of some type.

"We're all armored up except Dan and Frank." Savannah said.

Cam contacted Dan and Frank when she arrived.

"Dan is armored up." Cam said. "It's just Frank who's not."

John Henry received some updated information.

"Dan was able to bring Frank his vest and a windbreaker to cover it over with." John Henry said. "Everyone is protected now."

Savannah felt a little more confident. More than likely some of their teams were about to see action. As to exactly what the action would involve was currently unknown. Damage should be held to a minimum.

"I'm pleased to hear it." Savannah said. "I want to avoid damage to any of our teams."

She didn't believe the enemy was going to get off as easily.

There was no way to know exactly what or when something would happen. There was a pretty good indication whatever was going to happen probably wouldn't be too much longer.

The Terminators all observed and heard both Savannah's and Young Allison's concern for their safety and well being. It was for all of them as a team. It only reinforced their personal commitment to Young Allison and Savannah. It reaffirmed their title of the 'Chosen Ones'.

Cameron told all of them the 'Chosen Ones' would always know what was best for everyone. When it was a hard call, they would make the proper choice. They would always do the right thing.

Vanna let Precious see Derek and Riley on her phone. Precious could see their images and hear their voices. Derek and Riley could see Precious and speak to her. They kept it short and told Precious they loved her and missed her. Precious looked intently at the small screen.

Vanna assured them if there was any problem they would know at once. She reminded them Samantha was there for any assistance if it was needed. They ended the call.

Jan saw the loving concern of her aunt and uncle for her cousin. She needed to remember why she went there in the first place.

"I'm supposed to ask you if you want to come to dinner, or I can bring it to you here." Jan said. "It's why I came here actually. I need to let the others know in the commissary."

Vanna toyed with Jan a little more. She knew what Jan hoped to see.

"Are you sure it wasn't to see if I was 'busy'?" Vanna asked.

Jan felt better joking about it after what Vanna and Allison said they still did too. She didn't see any reason not to be honest either. She wasn't the only one who did it.

"Don't forget, I did knock." Jan said. "I hoped I might see something."

Allison started laughing.

Jan decided to tell it like it was.

"I hoped you both were together." Jan said.

Now Vanna started laughing.

Earlier Jan heard Jesse and Claire whisper about 'dessert' later on. She planned to spy on them with Summer. Since she was staying in Summer's room, it would be easier this time. Actually Jesse was the easiest one to spy on. When she was with someone, she never shut the door tight. It was an open invitation for anyone to join them. In her case it was an open invitation for her to view them.

Allison didn't want to stay in Riley's room all the time. It wouldn't be hard to take Precious out with the stroller there now.

"We can go to the commissary." Allison said. "I'll get the baby buggy."

Jan looked around.

"Where's Samantha at?" Jan asked. "I haven't seen her."

Vanna frowned slightly. She didn't want to get into a discussion about some things. It seemed best to keep it simple.

"She's in the nursery." Vanna said.

Jan looked over towards the nursery.

"Oh." Jan said.

Vanna wasn't exactly sure of the timetable Precious was on. If Samantha was there, she could ask her when the next projected time would be. Either way, she needed to keep all of the doors open.

"I may need to nurse Precious." Vanna said.

Allison wanted a little more for later on. She wanted to offer up a few suggestions of her own. There were still a few other players in the game.

"Maybe Jesse can do it this time." Allison said. "I'll be spending the night…."

Vanna understood what Allison wanted. She was willing to be a little more flexible with her original schedule since she became so bored earlier.

"Sure, Allison, it sounds good." Vanna said. "We'll work it all out."

Jan was pleased they were going to use the fancy stroller. She saw it a few times already. It looked like something which would be fun to do. Maybe she could have a little control over it.

"Can I push the baby buggy?" Jan asked. "I want to push my cousin."

Vanna looked at Allison and felt she wanted to go to the commissary. She felt she was cooped up in there enough today too. She was ready to stretch her legs a little. It might even be something she could expand on a little. It probably wouldn't hurt to push the buggy a few laps around the inside of base either.

"Go grab it, Jan." Vanna said. "I'll get the travel bag for Precious."

Allison didn't want Jan to push the buggy too fast. She was a little worried she might get carried away.

"You need to go slow with it, Jan." Allison said. "Remember it's not a toy. It carries some very precious cargo."

Jan knew when to use caution. She was more than aware Precious was the precious cargo.

"I won't endanger my cousin." Jan said.

Jan brought the baby buggy and Vanna carried the go bag.

Allison looked towards the nursery door. It was very obvious someone was missing from their normal presence in Riley's quarters.

"Should we invite Samantha?" Allison asked.

Vanna wanted to let Samantha know she was included in everything. She still felt guilty about excluding her earlier. It wasn't her intention to do it in a spiteful or mean manner.

"Samantha is welcome to join us at any time." Vanna said. "She can join us for dinner, or come into Riley's room. There's room for everyone. I would really like to see her. I think Precious would as well."

Jan was excited by the news.

"I hope she comes." Jan said. "I haven't seen her since I've been here. I miss her too."

Vanna was sure Samantha was listening. She felt bad about excluding her earlier and wanted to rectify it. She wouldn't make the same mistake again. She needed to think about everyone and how she would feel. She certainly didn't want Samantha to feel like she was replaced. She was very aware how Cameron felt about matters like it. She didn't want to cause anyone any unnecessary strife.

Moments ago:

Riley and Derek finished their call with Precious. They looked at each other for a moment and shared a hug. There wasn't a whole lot to say. They joined the rest of the group waiting at the door to the main dining room.

There were other groups of people starting to arrive and form a line behind them. They all tried to look forward so they weren't noticed or looked at.

Only Riley looked around. She didn't see anything out of the ordinary.

"No one is paying us any special attention." Riley said.

Cameron knew there were other eyes on them. They were friendly eyes.

"That's good to know." Cameron said. "In the Control Center one of the team should be watching us and around us."

John felt bad for the others being excluded. He would have liked for some of them to come along with them but didn't want to create any issues. The experience at lunchtime was still fresh in his mind. He was sure there was more to it than they knew. It really made him wonder what the older couple saw in Cameron. It seemed to him they may have recognized her. He hoped they hadn't seen her in action against the enemy anywhere. He knew it was possible the enemy could be Skynet related, or something related to Cameron's 'off the books' operations. He wasn't sure which one would actually be worse. They didn't seem alarmed like it though.

"What are all the rest of them doing?" John asked.

Cameron could think of a few things they were probably doing.

"Hopefully they're having a good time." Cameron said as she winked at John.

John quickly caught Cameron's drift.

"Oh." John said.

John thought maybe dessert came earlier for some than others. He figured at least everyone would have something to eat.

Jim said he didn't mind watching the Control Center. The rooms were all made up and everything was in order.

Sheila led Ally and Hanna into John and Cameron's main suite.

Ally felt a little out of place. She tried to reassure herself.

"Cameron said this was OK." Ally said.

Hanna tried to reassure herself as well.

"I heard Cameron say it." Hanna said.

Sheila needed to take care of some business. She didn't see any reason why the others needed to wait any longer.

"You two get started. I need to deliver a couple of my uniforms to Sarah's and Riley's suites." Sheila said. "They each get a different one."

Hanna wondered why they weren't all the same. She looked at the outfit Sheila currently wore.

"What's different about them?" Hanna asked. "Aren't they all the same?"

Sheila decided to show them. She thought a little visual reinforcement would go a lot further than just words.

"Let me deliver the one from here Cameron used to Sarah's suite. I'll come back wearing the one for Riley to wear." Sheila said. "I'm sure you'll get a real kick out of it. I know I did when I wore it earlier."

Sheila stripped off what she wore now and left naked with the one from Cameron's closet.

"Let me see it too." Hanna called out. "I want to see what's different between the three of them."

Sheila returned and put it on for them. She faced away from them and bent over to touch her toes. Everything was clearly visible.

Hanna liked the look. It made a statement.

"It's quite revealing." Hanna said. "I like it."

Hanna would like to wear one of the maid's outfits for Claire.

Ally didn't want Sheila to get into trouble. She was worried Hanna might encourage her.

"Don't give her any ideas." Ally said. "She's lewd and crude enough as it is."

Sheila lifted her skirt and flashed them from the front.

"You love it." Sheila said and left.

Ally looked around. She spotted the maid's outfit Sheila left behind.

"I want to try hers on." Ally said. "The one she took off and left here."

Ally wondered how she would look in the regulation maid's outfit.

"I just want to get naked." Hanna said. "I don't get out much anymore."

Hanna and Ally both stripped.

They stood naked in front of each other. They were both very 'hungry'.

Ally glanced at Sheila's discarded outfit and at Hanna's nude body. The choice was easy to make.

"Forget the outfit, let's hit the bed." Ally said.

Hanna looked over Ally's nude figure with hungry eyes.

"Now you're talking." Hanna said.

The 'Allison' and 'Vanna' in both of them 'called' to them. The hunger which lurked in Vanna and Allison also lurked in both of them. It was the dominant file from the 'Neural Interface'.

Ally knew if Hanna wouldn't have been selected by Claire, it would be the two of them who were together all the time. It wasn't how events played out. It was her and Sheila. She loved Sheila dearly. Right now her inner fire was lit for Hanna.

Gail and Holly remained in the Control Center after the other three Metal girls left. They looked at each other.

"I guess for this round it's us by default." Gail said.

Holly looked over Gail's sheath.

"It's fine with me." Holly said. "We don't often get to be alone together."

Gail and Holly were seldom at the same location.

"It's only been a few times." Gail said.

The thought made Gail think of Savannah. She wanted to be with her again. Savannah wasn't there right now. The other Metal girls were. Holly was the one there now.

"It will be a few more before the cruise is over." Holly said.

Whatever differences they seemed to have experienced in the past were resolved and firewalled. They'd both learned from their girlfriends it was beautiful to share.

"Jim, do you mind if we use the bed in back of you?" Gail asked. "I think Sheila's room is too small."

Jim listened to their conversation and hoped it would progress a little further. It appeared it was about to. He tried to seem nonchalant.

"I can turn my audio off." Jim said. "It will be fine."

Nudity or sex didn't bother any of the Metal girls, at least not anymore. It took Holly a little longer not to be bothered by either. Allison told her she should be proud of how beautiful she was. Over time she came to realize it.

Jim sat facing the monitors but could watch the Metal girls in the reflection of one of the screens. He didn't plan to turn his audio off either. It wasn't often he was able to witness this type of activity this close and this clearly. He normally needed to listen through a wall or two. The best he could hope for was to peek in an open door. He needed to have a good reason why he was there if anyone spotted him.

He watched Gail and Holly strip in the reflection. He needed to adjust his pants a little, and then a little more. They started out kissing and then moved to the bed.

"It's OK if you watch us." Gail said. "But don't neglect your job."

Jim was worried he offended them.

"I'm sorry." Jim said.

Holly wanted to clear the statement up.

"No. We mean you can watch us directly, but keep checking the monitors too." Holly said. "You have two eyes. Just keep one of them on the monitors."

Jim felt it was a little forward. He didn't want to worry about it. He wanted to do it.

"Are you sure?" Jim asked.

Gail and Holly didn't even need to think about it.

"Yes." Gail and Holly both said.

Jim still wanted to play it cool.

"I may do it." Jim said.

Holly didn't think it would bother anything.

"It never hurts to look." Holly said.

Jim expected such behavior from Sheila and maybe Ally. It was a pleasant surprise. He wanted to let them know he would give them privacy at any time.

"I'll look away with my one eye I'm watching you with if you want me to at any point." Jim said. "I'll respect your wishes."

Gail wanted Jim to see the full impact of her efforts. She didn't want Jim to see less. She wanted him to see more.

"When I take Holly to heaven, you can look with both eyes." Gail said.

Holly actually liked the idea.

"You can do the same when I get Gail there." Holly said. "Ecstasy should be cherished and celebrated."

Jim was clearly elated at the opportunity for a first hand visual encounter.

"I will." Jim said. "Thank you. This will be a unique experience for me."

Gail hoped to deliver fast and furious finishes.

"I would plan on looking a lot." Gail said.

Jim was aware it was going to take a lot of concentration.

He would review the 'offer' Sheila made to him on several occasions. He would need to speak with Cameron first to make sure any 'activity' like it wouldn't result in punishment or deactivation.

He was aware of some of the other things Sheila was rumored to have done to Grays. He hoped it wasn't a ploy to do the same thing to him…. He crossed his legs. He wasn't sure what would regenerate, or how long it would take. Maybe it never would. It was all very unpleasant to think about.

Holly and Gail sharing soon replaced any other thoughts. It was something beautiful.

Jim still needed to be mindful of where the others were on the ship and what was happening around them. He also needed to follow the developing operation near the port.

He knew CamNet would be all over everything everywhere. He was sure if he missed something he would be notified immediately.

Closing monologue by Cameron:

You Can Watch

Love is fleeting
It can come and go
It may sprout quickly
Then hit a plateau

When love is stalled
Stuck in the doldrums
One must select and choose
Dump the lemons and pick the plums

Not every choice
Will be the correct one
To sit back and do nothing
Produces zero to none

Get in the game
Play life's lotto
It's the only way to share
A personal grotto

It's very consistent
It's easy to botch
If you don't act
You can watch

Nobody