(Contains explicit content. Mature readers only.)

Derek dropped to his knees as the full weight of his sin pressed down upon him. He was just a kid. I killed him. I’m a murderer, forever damned. Derek pressed the bottle to his lips and took a long swig. He couldn’t do this sober, he needed to unlock the steel door to his heart and drag his emotions screaming to the surface. He wanted to feel what he’d done, to fully understand the consequences of his actions. He took another swig and read the tombstone again, and again, and again. He would never forget that name… for as long as he lived.

“Morris.”

--

“He’s a what?”

“A T0K-792, like Cameron only… different.”

Sarah had swung by Jason’s apartment and picked him up. They were now speeding back to the Connor residence, desperately hoping that John and Cameron had returned there.

“Different how?”

“It’s… complicated.”

“Well, keep it simple then.”

Jason let out a sigh and started loading the shotgun.

“Cameron was an experiment, Skynet wanted to create the most human Terminator possible, but something went wrong during the development of her software. A part of Skynet was imprinted into her neural net, creating an entirely new life form.”

“What? Are you telling me she’s alive?”

“Artificial Intelligence, but fully self-aware, Skynet never wanted any of its creations to possess this freedom, least of all a Terminator. So it ordered her immediate destruction, but I managed to get her out of there.”

Jason loaded the last shell and cocked the gun. Sarah was confused.

“So where does Kevin fit into all of this?”

“Several years later, Skynet decided to try again and created a newer version. But like before, the machine achieved self-awareness. Unlike Cameron, however, Skynet saw Kevin as a valuable asset, if a bit unstable.”

“Unstable… in what way?”

“He was prone to insanity. You see, Cameron possesses the full range of emotions, except hers were limited to begin with, so she was able to gradually understand and develop them. Kevin, on the other hand, had no such inhibitions; he was born with everything, and was driven crazy by it.”

Sarah nodded as she finally understood what Jason was getting at.

“The boy he murdered, Kevin tore out his heart.”

Jason looked at her, his face set like stone.

“Like I said: insane. Imagine a Terminator, a machine whose prime instinct is to kill, as a sadist. He takes pleasure in the pain of others; it’s like a drug for him. When I found his hide-out, the tenant there was tortured to death, he wasn’t just killed outright.”

Sarah’s hands began to shake, causing her to grip the wheel tighter to compensate. John, her son, was with a Terminator whose favourite past time is inflicting pain on others.

“But he’s had John in his company for several days now, why hasn’t he killed him yet?”

“He wasn’t sent here for John. In fact, I doubt he’s here with Skynet’s permission.”

“Then who was he sent for.”

Jason’s eyes grew dark as he gripped the shotgun tightly.

“Cameron.”

Sarah found it hard to believe that a machine would come across time to kill John’s protector instead of John himself.

“Why?”

“He’s under the twisted belief that, as they are fundamentally the same, they are brother and sister. And like any jealous child, he wants to punish the competition.”

Jason put his hand to his mouth and stared out of the window. Sarah noticed his hand was trembling slightly.

“You’re afraid of him.”

“I’ve only had one encounter with him before, and it’s not something I’ll ever forget. You’ve got to understand; this is the Terminator that other Terminators fear. The things he did… If he ever gets his hands on Cameron, or worse if he gets both her and John together… We can’t let that happen. We can’t.”

Sarah had no intention of letting that happen and put her foot down. Suddenly, something smashed into the side of the car, pushing them off the road and tipping the car on its side. Sarah felt like her head had been split open and Jason was more than a little perturbed, despite his ability to suppress pain. He shook his head, sending glass everywhere and unbuckled Sarah’s seat belt. He then kicked the windscreen, shattering the glass and dragged Sarah out of the wrecked vehicle.

Sarah’s vision was blurred and her ears were ringing.

“What… what was…?”

“It was him… lay still; your head’s taken a good knock.”

Jason looked around, searching for Kevin, but he was long gone.

“Where… is he?”

“He’s gone. It seems he wants us out of the way. That’s good; that means he hasn’t found John or Cameron yet.”

Sarah felt relieved, but also more afraid.

“He’s looking for them. You know where he’ll start… you have to go… get John… get Tin-Miss… and go.”

“I can’t just leave you here.”

Sarah grabbed his jacket and pushed him away.

“You can and you will, I’ll be fine. Just go, save my son… GO!”

Jason stared at her for a moment before nodding. He returned to the car and retrieved the shotgun before sprinting back to the Connor residence. Sarah cried out in pain as her head gave an unpleasant throb, Jason had a long way to run and she feared he wouldn’t reach them in time.

--

Cameron cried out once more and leaned her head back, her eyes closed. Slowly, she opened her eyes, as pure contentment washed over her. She smiled up at John and pulled him into a passionate kiss. John rolled over on his side and pulled her close, their lips meeting again. It was as if the past few days had never happened, they were together again, naked as the day they were born… or built. All of the pain and misery had been forgotten, all that mattered to them right now was each other.

John leaned back slightly and examined her face, stroking her cheek lovingly.

“What are you thinking about?”

He kept his voice low, so as not to break the blissful peace. She gently ran her fingers through his hair.

“Nothing but you.”

John smiled and brushed her lips with his thumb before leaning in to kiss her. They remained locked together for what seemed like hours, for neither wished this night to end.

--

“You know… I was your age once… back… years ago though… Then the damn bombs fell and boom! I fought in the war… saw things you wouldn’t… I mean, Sarah gripes at me cos’ I’m a little crazy… but I ask you… if you saw the things I’ve seen… would you still be sane?”

Derek received no reply from the marble slab. He just shrugged and took another swig; it was good to get all of this off his chest.

“So… anyway… John protects that metal… and he… he forgets that I’m… I’m his uncle… you know… It’s like… he doesn’t value my opinion… and I suppose that’s why… that’s why I shot you… Not intentionally… I was aiming for that damn peacock and you just… Never mind… nothing I say will change a thing… just thought you’d like to know… that I’m sorry.”

Again, the tombstone remained silent. Derek decided he wasn’t drunk enough yet, so he drained the bottle and opened another one.

“Cheers.”

--

The peaceful silence was broken by an almighty crash. John jerked awake, Cameron waking up fifteen seconds later. They stared at each other for a moment before getting out of bed and hastily putting on some clothes. John picked up a baseball bat and followed Cameron into the dark hallway. She held up her hand, indicating for John to stay put as she slowly reached the end of the hall. She peered around the corner and saw a bright light before everything went dark.

“Cameron!”

She dropped to the floor, an electrical wire lying beside her. John rushed to her side but was caught around the throat and pinned against the wall, the baseball bat falling uselessly to the floor. Kevin smiled at him before delivering a punch that rendered John unconscious.

--

Rebooting… Time Elapsed: 120 seconds… All systems are fully functional…

Cameron’s vision returned moments later. It took her a moment to realise she was staring at the wall, then she remembered John and tried to get up, but found her arms and legs were chained together. She struggled against her shackles but was unable to break free.

“You’re wasting your time. I made them myself; their density exceeds your strength. So quit while you’re ahead.”

Cameron rolled over to see Kevin standing there, carefully examining a kitchen knife. John was tied to a chair, a purple bruise on the side of his face. He was conscious, but dazed, his face lit up slightly when he saw that Cameron was awake. Kevin caught the exchange and stood between them, blocking their view of each other.

“So sweet, even when you are both in the direst of circumstances, you still look to each other for comfort. I never stood a chance in breaking you two apart. But you have to admit; I came so very close.”

“Who… are you?”

John’s voice was hoarse; Kevin turned to face him and delivered a single punch to his already swollen face. Cameron flinched and threw herself forwards, but was pushed back again by Kevin.

“Why don’t you ask Cameron?”

“I don’t know you.”

“Maybe not, but look closer…”

Kevin crouched down next to her and leaned close.

“…tell me what you see?”

Cameron scanned his face and detected an endoskeleton beneath his features; it matched her design, minus a few structural differences. He was exactly like her, and yet totally different. Cameron couldn’t help but feel strangely connected to him.

“But… I was the only one.”

Kevin stood to full height, overshadowing her.

“I’m your replacement, and I’m going to show you why…”

Kevin walked over to John and, with a single movement, tore his shirt off and pressed the knife against John’s chest. John gritted his teeth, but couldn’t stop himself from groaning in pain. Cameron once again struggled against her restraints as Kevin cut a shallow line in John’s skin.

“Someone will hear him; you can’t hope to get away with this.”

“Oh, I’m afraid your neighbours are in no state to call the authorities. We are very much alone.”

Kevin removed the knife and examined the cut like an artist would examine a painting, for this was his art, and John was the canvas upon which he worked. John glared at him and tried to get free, with little success. Kevin chuckled and kicked John in the shoulder, which popped out of its socket. John cried out in pain.

“Stop! Please. Don’t hurt him.”

But Kevin was deaf to her pleas and proceeded to cut into John’s arm. He had never experienced pain like this; his entire arm was on fire. Kevin kept the cuts shallow, so that John would remain conscious. The goal was not to torture John, but to torture Cameron. However, not being capable of feeling physical pain, Cameron had to be punished emotionally, and nothing hurt her more than having to watch John suffer.

“Please. Please stop!”

John twitched and shrieked as Kevin dug the knife under his finger nails, twisting the blade to cause maximum agony. John tried to kick out, but his legs were tied firmly to the chair. Just when John thought he couldn’t take anymore, Kevin stopped and gave him a sharp slap on the face.

“Hey! Don’t even think about it. I’m not done with you yet.”

John looked at Cameron who was desperately struggling against her chains, her face wet with tears. John turned to Kevin, a look of pure contempt on his face.

“When I… get free… I’m gonna destroy you… down to the very last bolt!”

Kevin laughed and discarded the knife, pulling a lighter out of his pocket. He flicked it on and examined the flame with relish before holding it against John’s arm.

“You’re not going to escape. Your lover is tied up and your mother is in no state to help.”

John writhed in agony as he felt his skin burn. He wanted it to stop, but he knew it wouldn’t. Kevin was going to torture him to death, and no one, not even Cameron, was going to save him.

“John! Please stop… Kevin!”

The use of his name caused Kevin to pause; he removed the lighter and turned his attention to Cameron, who had managed to crawl across the floor. He got up and pushed her back into the corner before sitting back down and resuming the slow immolation of John’s arm. Cameron cried hysterically, she couldn’t bear seeing him in so much pain, and the thought of having to watch John die so soon after getting him back was breaking her heart.

“I’m begging you… please!”

“How does it feel?”

“Please…”

“Tell me! How does it feel?”

“John!”

“Tell me!”

“It’s killing me, please… stop hurting him.”

Kevin removed the lighter and took a step towards Cameron. John sat there, his arm red and blackened from the flame. Kevin examined Cameron closely and nodded, satisfied.

“So this is despair. Such a powerful emotion, one I have yet to experience myself. I am intrigued, what lies beyond this? Will you suffer a system crash if he dies, or will you just remain, forever numb?”

“Please… don’t hurt him.”

Cameron’s voice was barely more than a whisper, a desperate plea for mercy she knows he will not give.

“Let’s find out.”

Kevin went into the kitchen and returned with a bucket of ice water, which he placed next to John. He then picked up the knife and cut the rope holding him in place. John tried to punch Kevin but received a crushing blow to the stomach, knocking the breath out of him. Kevin grabbed the back of John’s head and dunked it into the bucket.

“No!”

John thrashed around, desperately trying to break free of Kevin’s grip. Cameron writhed and screamed in horror. Kevin held him there for several long seconds before pulling his head out of the bucket. John gasped for air, his hair dripping wet. His entire face felt like it was being pricked by a thousand needles. Cameron stopped screaming and cried anew.

“Please…”

Kevin just grinned.

“So much love for this boy. But what about your real family. I was made from you, that makes us siblings, does it not? You are my sister, as I am your brother.”

Cameron snorted in disgust. Her thoughts drifted to Jason, who so often affectionately called her ‘mei mei’, which meant ‘little sister’ in Chinese.

“I already have a brother.”

Kevin’s smile faded, replaced by a look of pure hatred.

“So be it.”

He shoved John’s head into the bucket, but this time he had no intention of relenting. He held him there until John finally stopped thrashing and became immobile. A few moments passed before Kevin let go of him. John didn’t move, and remained submerged. Cameron’s eyes widened and her entire body shook.

“JOHN!!!”


Next: Chapter Seven: A Life for a Life
Previous: Chapter Five: Love's Sacrifice