It was the day Alison Young returned to the main camp of the resistance fighters. The screen showed two men guarding the entrance to what looked like a complex series of tunnels.
"I need to see your I.D.," the one on the left said. He had a large gun that was clutched tightly against his chest.
"Of course," Alison's voice said, and an arm was raised to show the shiny, silver band.
The man on the left inspected it then nodded to the man on the right, who moved out of the way. John guessed that the guard on the left was the leader, but the guy on the right was definitely more of a "guard." He was at least six and a half feet tall, and looked as if he spent his entire day doing push-ups.
"You're to report to John Connor immediately," the man on the left said. The screen moved up and down as if nodding, and then the cyborg walked through the entrance. She turned around quickly.
"Sorry, but where is he again?" she asked. "I keep forgetting."
The large guard looked skeptical, but answered her anyway. It probably helped that Alison was a girl. As far as John knew, there weren't many women resistance fighters.
"Take your first left, second right, left again, and then walk straight ahead."
"Thanks," the cyborg replied in a cheery voice.
Static.
"Alison?" the man on the screen asked. John instantly knew the man was his future-self. He looked mostly the same, just older and with more scars and lines on his face.
"What happened?" Future-John asked. "You were gone for so long."
"I was kidnapped by Skynet, but I escaped," she said. Future John took a step back.
"No one ever escapes," he told her. The robot paused for a moment.
"I did," she stated.
Future-John looked as if he wanted to approach her, but was debating it in his head.
"Did they do anything to you?" he asked.
The screen shook back and forth.
"They just asked questions," she said. "I didn't tell them anything."
Static.
"Alison, what are you doing?" A man's voice asked. John couldn't tell who it was because the screen was focused on his future self and the gun that was pointed to his head.
"Killing John Connor," she stated robotically. John heard the click of a gun being cocked.
"She's a cyborg!" Future-John yelled and there was a clamor, along with a loud buzzing noise. The screen started to go black, but John could still hear faint voices.
"How'd you know?" an unrecognizable voice asked.
"No one ever escapes," was the only reply he received in return.
And then there was complete silence.
The screen came back to life and showed the image of Future-John. Behind him were all sorts of wires and machines.
"Do you know who you are?" he asked.
"Cameron Phillips," Alison's voice answered without emotion. Future John nodded.
"And your mission?" he asked. There was a short pause, and Future-John looked slightly worried.
"To protect John Connor," Cameron stated.
Static.
The screen showed the same room before, but this time pictures were hung up on the walls. John noticed they all seemed to be of him or people that had been involved in his life. There was one of him with his foster parents, one of his mom and dad, one of Derek, one of Charlie, and others of people John didn't recognize.
"When are you sending me back?" Cameron asked. She was staring at Future-John sorting through a stack of papers that he held in his hand.
"Soon," he answered distractedly.
"What if I don't want to go?" Cameron asked. Future-John stopped what he was doing and turned around.
"Cameron..." he said, "we've had this conversation before."
"You need protection," Cameron stated. Future-John sighed.
"I'll have protection," he told her. "I have a whole army of soldiers that follow my every command."
The screen moved down to where it showed Cameron's hands in her lap.
"Don't worry about me," Future-John said. "I'll be fine."
Static.
"It's time," Future-John said as he entered what John presumed was Cameron's room. Cameron had, apparently, been lying on her bed staring at the ceiling. She immediately got up and followed him to the room with all the machines.
"Sit down," he said and gestured to a chair that sat in the middle of the room. She did so, and looked up at him.
"You need me to stay," she said, though it sounded more like a plea. Future-John shook his head and smiled sadly.
"You're so much like Alison," he breathed.
"Did you love her?" Cameron asked bluntly. He looked away distractedly.
"I did once," he replied. "A long time ago."
"I don't understand," Cameron said. Future-John sighed and grabbed a pair of pliers off a nearby metal table.
"Alison knew how to jump through time. She wanted to know what the Savior of Mankind was like as a teenager. So, when I was seventeen, she moved to our neighborhood," he paused. "I had no idea she was from the future."
"Then, about a year later, she disappeared. The next time I saw her was six months ago," he said. "Then, she explained everything."
"Everything?" Cameron asked. John nodded.
"She said her father worked on creating the time machines, and one day she stole a prototype. She said she just wanted to escape from reality for a little while. She never expected to fall for me."
"Why'd she go back to the future?" Cameron asked. Future-John finally turned around to face her.
"Because sooner or later, everyone always goes back."
The screen shook back and forth.
"I don't understand love," Cameron said. Future-John smiled slightly and turned around to grab a surgical knife.
"You will," he said. "Once you go back to the past."
Cameron was silent, obviously confused. Future-John turned back around.
"My past self, my teenage self, will fall in love with you," he told her. "It's why I choose you to protect me."
John nearly jumped away from the computer screen. Cameron voiced the question he internally asked.
"How do you know?"
Future-John walked towards her.
"Because you're Alison, just less..." he trailed off.
"Human?" Cameron finished for him. Future-John chose not to answer and knelt beside her.
"I'm going to erase some of your memories," he told her. Because Cameron trusted him, she didn't question him. Not on that matter, at least.
"Will I love him back?" she asked. Future-John looked up at her for a few moments before answering.
"Yes," he said, "but it will be a different kind of love."
"How will I know when I love him?"
Future-John placed a hand on her arm.
"You just will."
There was a large amount of static and then the screen went completely blank. John guessed that he had just seen the last of Cameron's memories. He felt like over the past few hours he had had one of those out-of-body experiences. It was weird watching the person you were supposed to become, but knowing nothing about them. What was even weirder was watching someone else's memories.
He had received answers, at least. Cameron could definitely love. According to Future-John, she was supposed to love him. John hated how hopeful he was that this was true.
The whole Alison situation was less clear. John knew that time-traveling put everything on a different time line, so in his world she probably didn't exist. If she did, however, it was highly unlikely they would ever meet. Not that he wanted to meet her. In fact, he planned to avoid it at all costs. Having two Camerons (or Alisons, depending on the way you looked at it) would be way too confusing.
John unplugged Cameron's chip from his computer and gripped it tightly in his hand. He walked over to his bed and sat down cautiously.
Cameron looked so peaceful. John didn't think he'd seen anything more beautiful. Her brown hair fell in waves around her face, and John brushed them back behind her ear. He had an urge to kiss her forehead, but stopped himself. Hopefully, there would be time for that later.
He used the pliers that were still on his bed to insert her chip back into the side of her head. He twisted it until it locked in place and then leaned back, waiting for her to awake. His fingertips lightly rested on the back of her left hand.
After ten seconds, her eyes opened.
"Welcome back," John said. Cameron looked at him in a way he hadn't seen before. It was unlike her because it was a way that seemed to be filled with emotion.
"You fixed me," she replied, and then smiled at him.
cliffhanger!...yeah, I know I'm mean :P
you know what to do