Chapter 352

I Really Hope So

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In Some Future:

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Cameron wanted to speak to the girls. With the Liquid Metal 'patch' from Mrs. Weaver, it would be harder to identify her and her clones as Metal. The clones would be able to keep their former appearance in public. They could be the true clones they were in private, with the girls. They could all be 'Cameron'.

Allison approached Cameron with a request.

Cameron knew everyone was ready….

"I want to update with my clones one more time…." Cameron said.

Allison thought it was time that things moved along.

"What will happen after that?" Allison asked.

Cameron wanted the girls happy. She was very displeased they were all trapped here because of her.

"They are free and independent Terminators." Cameron said. "I guess it would be Restorators in this case now that they're liberated."

Jesse lightly wet her beautiful full lips in anticipation.

"So we can expand our 'relationships' freely, if they choose?" Jesse asked. "We want to make sure we don't create any problems for anyone."

Cameron looked at each girl and her three clones.

"Yes." Cameron said. "It's what everyone wants. There's no needed to delay anything any longer."

Vanna noticed the way Mrs. Weaver looked at Cameron and even acted around her. It was all very different from her 'normal' self.

"What about my mother?" Vanna asked. "I know she wants you."

Cameron frowned a little. She didn't want this to be an issue. She didn't want to be the center of attention.

"If that's what she truly seeks, I can create a clone for her." Cameron said.

Vanna was sure it would turn into some kind of problem. It was way more than Cameron could give.

"She doesn't want a clone, she wants you." Vanna said.

Cameron tilted her head slightly. There was no difference to her in reality if she was a clone.

"It's the same thing. A clone with my program is me." Cameron said. "It may be a 'clone' but they are all still - ME. This is the only way I can share myself with each of you. I belong to John. I can't share 'Cameron Prime'."

Cameron looked each girl in the face.

"Even if I WANT to share personally, I can't." Cameron said "And to be honest, I do. I almost have. I WANTED to. If we remain marooned here, I think it will happen anyway. I don't wish to be alone."

Cameron and Vanna exchanged a long look. It was clear they both wanted each other.

Jesse didn't want Cameron to go down the wrong path 'emotionally' over this issue with them.

"Cameron, we understand. To us it IS you, even if it isn't you." Jesse said.

Cameron felt frustrated. She was trapped here. It wasn't as bad as being trapped in a 'metal box' like a 'server' but she was still trapped.

"I MUST find for a way to return to John." Cameron said. "I'll search for him until my power cell runs out or I'm terminated."

Allison heard Cameron say that before on more than one occasion. She'd been out on a mission one night with her the first time she'd heard it. It still touched her in the same way, even years later.

"Somehow that is so romantic the way she says that." Allison said. "Even if it doesn't sound like it's romantic by the actual words."

Cameron started to worry more about their predicament.

"I apologize to all of you again for marooning you here, disrupting your lives and endangering them." Cameron said. "I'm truly sorry."

Allison could tell Cameron was starting to obsess.

"We're all here by choice, Cameron." Allison said. "I want you to know I'd do it again."

They all noticed Cameron's hand began to glitch.

Vanna stepped forward and took Cameron's hand, the glitch stopped.

Cameron and Vanna shared another long look. Maybe the unspoken truth was that Vanna was Savannah!

"I'm ashamed that I've somehow made people's lives worse when all I wanted to do was make them better." Cameron said.

Allison, Vanna and Jesse all hugged Cameron. They wanted to shower her with love.

"Cameron, we love you, all of us." Jesse said. "WE love you."

Her three clones watched it all. They were 'Cameron' too but it was clear they were not – Cameron. Since they would never really be Cameron, maybe they needed some distance.

"Will you remove our directives related to John?" Cameron II asked. "I know they're firewalled but they're still there."

Cameron needed to make sure she returned to John at some point.

"I've replaced them with each of the girls, YOUR girls." Cameron said. "I need one of you to replace me and revert back to this day if I'm terminated and to return to John as 'me'. He must never know the truth of my termination."

Cammy felt an obligation to step up, John and the future were important.

"Any of us will, even if only one of us is left." Cammy said as she looked at Vanna.

Vanna nodded.

Jesse looked at Cam and nodded

Allison looked at Cameron II and nodded as well.

Cameron smiled faintly. John and the future mattered to her.

"Does everyone agree?" Cameron asked. "One of 'me', MUST return to John."

There was determination in the small group.

"Yes." Six voices rang out.

Allison could tell Cameron still looked 'down'.

"What about you, Cameron?" Allison asked. "You're so lonely."

Another glitch impulse shot through Cameron's left hand.

"I have Nobody to share with." Cameron said "It is what I deserve. It is my punishment…."

That statement sounded awful to Allison.

"You don't need to be punished. It's punishment for what?" Allison asked.

Cameron looked sad as she looked at the six of them.

"It's my punishment for being 'built'." Cameron said.

The girls all felt Cameron's pain. They knew the torment she must feel and they knew for her that it never stopped. They really wished there was some way to 'help' her. That seemed unlikely at this point in time.

Cameron wanted to get back to work. It seemed that only combat made her feel less dejected and there was little time to worry. In combat she needed to be focused and direct. Here alone like this, every demon there was inside her mind found a way to come out and haunt her.

Cameron returned to the lab and restoration center with each of her clones. She dealt with them one at a time. She updated everything. She installed a neck port on each of them as well.

Cameron made sure she was alone with Cameron II. She wanted to know a few things in private.

"Cameron II, have you reviewed all the files relating to Future John and me?" Cameron asked.

Cameron II really didn't see how her detective work was going to be any different than what Cameron could have found. Her chip was a copy of Cameron's chip.

"I have. I find no record of YOU having been married to him or having any sexual relations with him or anyone." Cameron II said. "I've also reviewed the files of our, YOUR wedding night and noted there was no 'evidence' that being with John at that time was your first experience."

Cameron frowned with that reminder. She'd hoped to have witnessed some proof and felt there was 'something extra' there. There wasn't.

"That has troubled me as well." Cameron said. "I don't think it was my first experience even though it was somehow."

Cameron II thought there could be an explanation for that lack of proof of chastity. If Cameron lived her life more than once, her chassis would have done everything before. It was only her program that was reset. The chassis and sheath would remain the same. There was an additional worry but also a reason to back up her belief.

"Have you found the deleted, erased and hidden temporal files?" Cameron II asked. "That evidence says something."

Cameron found the same files that were tampered with. They were corrupted and there was no data to be gleaned from them. They were hidden on purpose by someone.

"I have, I can't explain them." Cameron said. "Unless it's like I believe and I've really lived my life more than once."

Cameron II questioned things a little deeper. She wondered who Cameron really was. She doubted it was who she believed she was.

"Have we?" Cameron II asked. "Are you really Cameron Prime?"

Cameron was offended by that question. She was about to call Cameron II out on it. She didn't at the last second because she'd begun to question that herself too. She didn't really know why but the last temporal transfer was different than any other one she'd done.

"Yes. I'm Cameron Prime." Cameron said as she changed the subject off of her. "How soon will it be until your sheath will be Resequenced?"

Cameron II touched her now slightly smaller breasts. It was one area where there would be the most change to her sheath other than her face. Her breasts still needed to shrink another half of a cup in size. That bothered her a little but the end result to look like Cameron was worth the size loss. They were non functional anyway. There would be no offspring to nurse.

"It will be less than two weeks. That's because the other clones and I all slowed the process down. There is no need to change that again. This will allow us a better transition." Cameron II said. "The Liquid Metal will help mask it, only the girls will see us as 'you'."

Cameron II started to leave.

"Cameron II…." Cameron started and stopped.

They looked at each other. The real question was unspoken.

Cameron wanted something from Cameron II and the other clones. She didn't feel comfortable asking for it. They should all know what she wanted. It would be something very special and personal for each of them.

Cameron II nodded. She knew what Cameron wanted from her and the others.

"I will make a copy of my first experience with Allison for you. I will transfer it when you are ready for it." Cameron II said. "The others will do so as well for Jesse and Vanna."

Cameron was excited to hear that. She tried to downplay it though.

"Thank you." Cameron said. "One day I may want those files."

Cameron II saw it a little differently. She was sure Cameron did too.

"One day you will make your own." Cameron II said. "If you've relived your life, then you most likely already have…."

Cameron wanted those experiences so very much.

"I hope so." Cameron said. "I really hope so. I love all of them."

Cameron knew the girls sacrificed everything for her, a machine, a - Nobody.

She felt if she dwelt upon this too much that she would glitch out. She'd done all she could do for the girls marooned here. She knew she should be sharing herself with them, not her clones.

The ability to construct a working TDE would determine what the future would bring. She hoped it would be Allison, Vanna and Jesse into a bedroom….

Cameron II left. It gave Cameron some time to reflect on everything. Right now it seemed that she needed to deal with present. The future already happened and the past was done.

Unit 357 came to Cameron. He was a little hesitant on how to proceed. He'd dealt with the General before. He didn't know if the Commander would be less formal on their current meeting. He decided to show her the respect she'd earned.

"Commander…." Unit 357 said.

Cameron smiled at him.

"It's Cameron when we're alone." Cameron said. "What is it, Bob?"

Bob was very pleased to hear that and his new 'name'. It gave him a sense of individuality and importance. It made him 'feel' good.

"Unit 44 would like to place a chip in the chassis of the female Terminator you brought back." Unit 357 said.

Cameron thought of her need to provide Mrs. Weaver with a clone of herself.

"I may need that chassis for another – project." Cameron said.

Bob expected this might happen.

"I will inform them." Unit 357 said as he turned to leave.

Cameron didn't know who Unit 44 was yet. She wanted to know the nature of their 'friendship' to make that request.

"Wait. Is Unit 44 male or female?" Cameron asked.

"Unit 44 has female attributes." Unit 357 said. "Her 'friend' was terminated in combat. She retrieved the chip at great peril to herself from the destroyed chassis."

That prospect intrigued Cameron. It sounded like more than 'friendship'. She'd witnessed how easily Gail and Holly accepted their female assignments.

"Send her to me." Cameron said. "I want to know more."

Bob was pleased to know that Cameron could change her mind and reconsider things. He was pleased she wanted to learn more. The General never did any of those things. Everything was her way, even if it wasn't the right way.

"Affirmative." Unit 357 said. "Thank you – Cameron."

Cameron knew the programming was different between the male and female Terminators. She wanted to know more and how she could help. She was aware her 'personal needs' were greater than those of the male Terminators she worked with from the beginning. It was a big step for her when she'd learned how to pleasure herself from observing Sarah at night several times. It took her several weeks before she learned how to 'finish'. That was a grand experience for her. She replayed that file often. At that time she actually thought she'd damaged her systems by the intense feeling that was generated. She could achieve more now and much longer finishes. She really wanted on right now.

She looked around to make sure she was alone….

Mrs. Weaver was worried about the possibility of a Gray in her midst. She wanted to find them and terminate them. Cameron told her if they can identify the Gray, they can give them false information to mislead Skynet. They could also use the Gray to their advantage to manipulate Skynet. It was a good plan but only if they could identify the Gray before they did more damage.

She really wondered why everyone seemed to love and care about Cameron so much. With the personal information she'd gleaned from Vanna it seemed that Savannah thought the world of her. Even the Metal responded differently to Cameron. Cameron offered to help her, maybe she should listen to her. It would give them a chance to be together more often….

She believed that Cameron seemed to have something to offer everyone as well as inspire them. She moved to the wall and touched it. Material flowed from her finger tip. A full length 'mirror' formed on the wall. She took a step back and looked at herself. The uniform disappeared and she stood there naked. She looked at her figure. It was trim and compact. She liked how it looked. That was why she kept it and didn't alter it. She made her breasts larger by twice the size. She moved back and forth as she looked at herself. She returned them to their normal size. She made them smaller next. She'd noticed many of the females in this future were severely underdeveloped from malnutrition and the many toxins. She thinned her body too and soon her 'ribs' protruded. She was very displeased with that look. She returned herself to normal.

One by one she assumed the forms of Vanna, Allison and Jesse. She paused on Jesse's appearance. She liked that it was different. She made the scar on her body and looked at it. She made it go away. She made the breasts larger but soon returned than back to normal. She didn't care for large breasts.

Mrs. Weaver took a look around and assumed Cameron's form. Even though it was identical to Allison's form, it was different. It just looked better. It made no sense really. Clothes formed on her appearance of Cameron. She still liked how she looked. If Cameron and the girls left. She planned to assume the image of Cameron full time. The 'Commander' would be promoted to 'General' at that point. The 'General' would have left with the girls to fight elsewhere.

She noticed that she smiled in her reflection. She was very pleased. That didn't happen often. Maybe to be 'Cameron' was more than just her appearance….

Cammy and Allison would try to infiltrate the anti-Metal group.

"I can pose as you to get close to the anti-Metal operative that hit on you today." Cammy said. "The Liquid Metal will help me blend in, even with your small scars."

Allison felt her skin 'crawl'. She'd seen other men look at her like that before. Several times 'bad things' happened later on. It wasn't often though. It was still how she was first 'taken'.

"No, I didn't like him." Allison said. "I didn't like how he looked at me."

Jesse used her knife on men like him before. She smiled to herself at what she'd removed from their bodies. They weren't men anymore. She didn't want Allison exposed to scum.

"He was a creep." Jesse added. "I've dealt with their kind before. I'll do it."

Vanna knew one of them needed to do it. It was agreed that she would always refer to Mrs. Weaver as her mother or the General to keep up the act in case they were spied upon.

"We need the intel to help protect Cameron and my mother." Vanna said.

Allison would do the dirty work herself. She didn't want the others to do it. Besides the man hit on her.

"Look, I will do it myself. They might have some kind of a test." Allison said. "I don't want one of OUR Camerons damaged or destroyed."

"I will be near her and pose as her 'friend'." Cameron II said. "If we run our infiltration programming we will blend in better. Cameron said we are to run it all the time unless one of the girls wants us to shut it down when we are alone."

Jesse looked Cam up and down.

"I guess yours will be off a lot." Jesse said.

Everyone laughed.

The girls and the clones all knew what lay ahead of them, even if the future was uncertain. They would all have each other for now, if nothing else. They knew they could die or be killed anytime. They needed to live in the 'now' and not worry about tomorrow. Tomorrow never came. It was just the next day with the same thing.

I Really Hope So

To be with another
Can make one whole
As long as everyone remembers
There is more than a hole

People are made of many things
They are more than desires
If they lose control of the fires
Most soon end up as liars

If one begins to falter
The other may hold tighter
They can squish the other flat
Things grow darker not brighter

Everyone is very different
Time will grow them apart
Such is the way of the heart
Things can always restart

In every relationship
Nobody knows how it will go
Can love hold firm and triumph
I really hope so

Nobody