Chapter 408

I've Missed You

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In Some Future: Duplicate Cameron

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Cameron worried more every minute that Skynet held them captive. The clock continued to run down and time may or may not be their friend. They were currently trapped. They weren't the only ones. Skynet needed a way out and there was none for it. The threat of the Doomsday device loomed ever nearer. Skynet was bound to become irrational at some point.

She heard an HK drone make a high speed pass somewhere near them. That seemed very unusual to her. Anything around the base should be moving slow and about to land. She gripped Allison's hand as she heard the HK drone return. That wasn't a good sign. Perhaps it was another one. Any Skynet reinforcements were bad news. Their prospects of escaping seemed to rapidly diminish. She was unsure how to move Mrs. Weaver if she was still frozen and she needed to protect Allison. They may have to leave her. That wasn't something she wanted to do.

Cameron exchanged a long look with Allison. Their eyes told each other they loved each other.

Allison knew her time was limited. She'd heard the drone too. She also understood what Cameron silently communicated to her. It didn't look good.

Cameron felt she didn't have anything to lose at this point. It looked like the clock was out of time.

"It isn't too late to let the Emissary take you to safety." Cameron said. "She's here to help."

Skynet detected the HK drone as well. It wasn't in communication with it but it did return and apparently land. That seemed somewhat odd. Perhaps it was damaged or the first of the fleet to return. There was no shooting so it took that as a good sign. It knew the pathetic Resistance already withdrew and left those in its custody to their fate. It decided some bluster was in order.

"I think I'll be fine." The Voice said. "I'm going to destroy you and the bodyguard. The Emissary will be sent to a work camp or used for the pleasure of the Grays who I choose to reward. Her body is in excellent condition. I may even copy my program into a Terminator chassis and use her myself. I will keep her as a trophy of my victory. I'll do that first. When I tire of her, the Grays can have her. It will be interesting to see if she can produce offspring. I'll enjoy having it dissected to see if they are like her. When the Grays finally kill her, she will be dissected as well. At least what's left of her will be."

Allison didn't like what she'd just heard. She wanted to convey an act of defiance. She made a few gestures with her hands and smiled.

Cameron wanted to keep Skynet off guard with another warning and threat.

"The Emissary has asked if you wish for any final words on your tombstone in the junk yard." Cameron said. "She said it's where all scrap metal ends up."

Cameron's words hit home. They angered Skynet even more.

"I've changed my mind about you." The voice boomed. "You will be reprogrammed as a Metal Whore for the pleasure of all, starting with me. Once the Grays are done with you, you will be sent for the pleasure of those in the work camps. A hundred men a day will have you, maybe two hundred. I will make that a requirement. That will be your only function until your power cell runs out. You will serve out time as a Metal Whore."

Cameron knew Skynet was focused on her right now. She further went after it. She wanted to interrupt its planning. At least she wasn't going to be terminated outright. As long as she was activated, she was still in the fight.

"What are you waiting for?" Cameron asked. "I hear a lot of talk but see no action."

Cameron calculated where to strike on the computers to do the most damage. Allison may be able to escape in the confusion. She knew she needed to cut the link to the Doomsday device. That was all that mattered even if she was terminated. She needed to get Allison away from there and to safety.

Freedom with honor was at hand. She smiled. This is how she would terminate….

Cameron thought it was a beautiful day to die.

Cammy left the main battlefield in the captured transport. She was almost to Bob's location on the outskirts of Skynet Central. The reports that she received were that the HK drone seemed to have 'Commander Connor' and 'Colonel Weaver' on it. She didn't see how that was possible. She asked again to see if they meant General Weaver and the Commander. She was assured it was the Colonel and the Commander.

A sudden sense of dread gripped Cammy. That could only mean Cam and Vanna left headquarters and went to Skynet Central on their own. She did understand why Vanna was there if that was the case. She wanted Allison and Cameron and 'her mother' back.

Cammy quickly called headquarters and wanted to see if Cam and Vanna were still there or not. Cam answered the call. She was halfway relieved to hear Cam's voice.

"Is Vanna there with you?" Cammy asked.

Cam expected this call. She received some disturbing information as well.

"Yes." Cam said. "I've heard the reports too. They are illogical but nonetheless they are out there."

Cammy thought they were as illogical as they were unexplainable.

"What is this then?" Cammy asked. "Something is going on."

Cam tried to put it together herself. Nothing fit.

"I don't know. I could see if it was 'Commander Connor and her sister' but not Cameron and Vanna." Cam said.

Cammy tried to reprocess what they knew was already at Skynet Central.

"Maybe it is Mrs. Weaver with Cameron or Allison." Cammy said.

Cam went over Bob's last report from inside Skynet Central before the General ordered him to leave. It only reinforced the mystery.

"Bob reported that Mrs. Weaver was incapacitated." Cam said.

Cammy tried to come up with an answer.

"What other choices do we have?" Cam asked.

The only other choice seemed to be Skynet's original choice, temporal management.

"Perhaps it's something from another future." Cammy said. "Or another past that has surfaced. Someone may be in the process of some 'temporal management' to 'fix' something.

Cam feared it might be 'temporal malpractice'.

"Or it's a Skynet trick." Cam said.

Cammy received additional bad news from around Skynet Central. It appeared one of the forward outposts that was set up to bring down Skynet transports and HK drones detected a new threat. Bob informed her of the developments as the transport neared his location.

"Bob has also reported a Skynet convoy of reinforcements approaching. Units have been dispatched to engage it." Cammy said.

Cam knew everything was about time right now and who could manage it the best.

"They need to stop it to buy Cameron, Allison and Mrs. Weaver more time." Cam said.

Cammy watched the Special Unit train. There were fiercely loyal to Cameron above anything else. She was aware that Cameron told them Allison must be protected at all costs and be the last one standing if it all fell apart.

"The Special Unit will fight until the last Restorator is terminated." Cammy said. "They will not fail. They know they are fighting for Cameron and Allison."

As an afterthought Cammy added. "And the General."

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In Some Future: Cameron Prime

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Cameron and Savannah overflew the Skynet compound once at high speed. They returned when it looked like the area was not hot. Some type of battle apparently occurred here and all that was left were the terminated.

She landed the HK drone off to the side in the compound between some buildings so it was not as exposed. They may need to make a hasty retreat and some cover would be nice.

Savannah was even more apprehensive than Cameron.

Cameron wanted to ease Savannah's fears some but she didn't know how this would play out either.

"It's OK Savannah. As you can see there's been a major battle here." Cameron said. "I don't know what we'll find. I don't know what this is about."

Cameron retrieved some more weapons. She made sure Savannah and her were as armed as they could be. They were in the enemy camp in enemy uniforms. So far all the dead were wearing the same uniform. If the enemy found them, there would be some pause. It the Resistance found them, they were in trouble.

"If we encounter anyone wearing the same uniform we are, shoot first." Cameron said. "Our uniforms should cause them hesitation. It's kill or be killed. Don't think, just shoot."

Savannah already bloodied her hands in the past. Cameron made sure of it. Cameron made sure she could kill and kill in cold blood if she needed to. This was even more dangerous than the operations that were conducted in the past.

"You've prepared me, Cameron." Savannah said. "I'm ready."

Cameron moved them to the corner of two building. She carefully peered around it and looked both ways. The main building was in front of them. Smoke billowed out of one side of it.

"Follow me closely and watch our backs." Cameron said. "If you see anything at all that seems out of place or suspicious let me know. There may be Liquid Metal here. We will need to use the plasma weapons on it or them. Keep firing as long as you can hold the weapon. It will start to get hot. Drop it and switch to your second weapon. Keep firing as long as you can. You can't let one get close enough to attack you. I can see Terminators fought each other here. One side must have won. I don't see the victors, only the vanquished."

The fact that none of the victors were present raised another question. Why not? Where would they be and what happened to them? There must be more events in play here. In fact, why wouldn't there be anyone here at all? She didn't detect any toxins out of the ordinary. There was no increase in radiation. That last thought bothered her. Maybe not yet was the real issue. Maybe they were in the middle of something about to happen.

Cameron didn't like having Savannah in the middle of all this. She knew she needed to find a TDE and get Savannah back home. That was all that mattered. Maybe she'd better see what was actually on either side of them before they advanced on the main building.

She quickly checked the first two structures. There was no major power source or a TDE. She moved on to the third building. There were several holes burnt through the roof and smoke billowed out of it in several places.

Cameron saw there was a lower level with major power cables running down there. She headed down there first. She started to check the rooms one by one. There was a secure area. She was able to breech the door. She didn't like what she found in what was basically a safe. Inside of it was a nuclear warhead. She looked and saw it was old. It was the SAME as the Nike missile warheads she'd gained control of. It looked like one of them was here. THAT was not good news to her. Was it one of her warheads or another one that Skynet obtained?

"Was that what it looked like?" Savannah asked.

Cameron checked the radiation levels again. They were stable. That warhead might not be.

"Yes." Cameron said. "It's a type I've seen before. It has a small yield but it is still very deadly. Anyone within a mile of here is certain to perish if it goes off. It's disconnected for now but someone could attempt a manual detonation. It's not safe and neither are we."

A million thoughts jumbled through her mind. Was this was a different timeline like River speculated or was this one of HER warheads? Did she become Skynet like she feared? She quickly deactivated the control wires going to it. It could no longer be set off remotely. She closed the door and jammed it as best as she could. She moved crates and boxes in front of it as well. She needed to get that warhead out of there when they left.

Cameron really wondered if she was Skynet here in this timeline. It left her with a very uneasy feeling. She didn't tell Savannah of what she suspected about THIS Skynet. She was too ashamed of herself right now. She was content the lower level was secure.

"Let's go back up to the main level." Cameron said.

Cameron could see heavy fighting occurred there. There was some kind of large weapon that looked damaged. She moved in and removed the wires that controlled it as well. It was now inoperative.

Savannah looked at the large weapon.

"Is this for anti aircraft?" Savannah asked.

Cameron could see everything in front of the weapon was destroyed or damaged. It had been fired in that spot.

"I don't know what this weapon is." Cameron said. "It may be for use against Liquid Metal. It's overkill for a regular Terminator."

Cameron stopped dead in her tracks.

She motioned for Savannah to stop and remain quiet. She pointed at a frozen figure and up above to the liquid nitrogen tanks.

The figure was cracked and distorted but it still resembled Cameron or Allison. It was clearly Liquid Metal. That didn't make a lot of sense to her right now. She did know Mrs. Weaver used Allison's form at times on operations. She'd seen that in the alternate future. Maybe that was what this was and what that large weapon was intended for her.

Savannah's heart skipped a beat when she saw the figure. It could only be one thing.

"Mother!" Savannah whispered to Cameron.

Savannah felt her heart skip a few more beats.

Cameron wasn't sure who it was yet. The fact they were frozen indicated they were not a friend of Skynet.

She climbed up and crushed the spray pipes that ran from the tanks. They were no longer functional. There wouldn't be any more liquid nitrogen sprayed down.

Cameron located a pack lying on the ground. It was charred a little on the outside. It contained two Thermite grenades and one plasma grenade.

She didn't know it but it was Cameron II's pack. She'd dropped it when she shoved Allison away from the blast. She also found a half burnt Metal skull with the chip removed. It had been carefully placed out of the way. Fear gripped her as she saw the parts of the burnt sheath material that remained. It was - her. It must be Duplicate Cameron. There was no other explanation. Duplicate Cameron was terminated. She must have been here with Mrs. Weaver to stop Skynet. She was glad to know they'd been on the same side. She didn't tell Savannah what she suspected she found was.

Cameron moved some metal tables around near where Mrs. Weaver was at. She used the Thermite grenade to start the metal burning and turn the other metal around it red hot. The heat was intense.

Savannah faced the frozen figure.

"I'm here now, Mother." Savannah said. "I've missed you greatly. I love you. I'll be back. I'm not leaving here without you. I swear it."

Cameron moved on. They still needed to clear the building. There was what looked like a TDE room ahead. It could be a 'Clean Room' too. They checked the surrounding area. It looked clear. There were dead Grays and damaged Terminators all around them. She didn't detect any life signs but that didn't mean there weren't some.

Cameron listened outside the vault door of the special room. She could hear 'herself' talking and an angry booming Voice responding and making threats.

She was sure the voice modulations were the same as hers but maybe it was only Allison. She remembered the damaged skull she'd just found.

"I've found what may be Duplicate Cameron or Duplicate Allison and what I think is the main Skynet computer." Cameron said.

Cameron wondered who or what the destroyed Terminator head came from. The head that was identical to hers and Duplicate Cameron's. There were clones of her in the past with Camille, Cam, Cammy and even Ally. If she were here fighting Skynet would she do that herself as well? Savannah interrupted her thoughts.

"Should we wait for my mother?" Savannah asked.

Cameron looked back at the thawing figure. There were other factors in play.

"We have the approaching convoy. They will be here in minutes." Cameron said. "We're out of time."

Seconds later Cameron could hear the sounds of a battle in the distance. It appeared the Restorators engaged the convoy. She'd wondered where the other force that fought here went. She hadn't seen them earlier. Maybe it was only a small force of Restorators or the Resistance even.

"Update your mother on everything that's happened since Riley came back. Duplicate Cameron should have filled her in up to that point. She won't be able to respond at first, she's a solid chunk of frozen Liquid Metal. Tell her as much as you can. Let me listen here for awhile to determine what's happening." Cameron said. "Don't touch her until she is says it is OK to do so. Don't mention your 'condition'. Don't tell anyone that yet."

Savannah shot Cameron a quick glance. She wondered why. She knew children were a luxury in any future. Maybe she would be kidnapped for the baby she carried. She headed back to Mrs. Weaver.

Cameron listened to the conversation in the vault. It seemed Duplicate Cameron talked about an Emissary from some future that looked like her. It reminded her of River's story in a way but this Duplicate Cameron didn't know of River. Maybe it meant that Allison was with her. That was good news. She still wondered what the back story was about. It must be something to buy time.

She went and checked on Mrs. Weaver again. She was still thawing out. She didn't want to wait any longer. The fighting in the distance was louder and closer. She quickly told Savannah what she was going to do and if anything went wrong to have her mother take her away from there and not worry about her.

"Savannah, get away from here as fast as you can and never look back." Cameron said. "Go with your mother. She will protect you."

Savannah looked apprehensive. She'd promised Cameron she would never abandon her.

Cameron could see she was hesitant.

"I free you from your promises." Cameron said. "Promise me this instead, Savannah. It's more than just about me or even you now. There's something of even greater importance…."

Savannah knew Cameron wanted the baby protected more than herself.

"I promise, Cammy - Cameron." Savannah said.

Cameron removed the plasma grenade from the pack.

"I'll be back." Cameron said.

She moved back up to the vault and was ready to blow the door open. She didn't know that was inside but she needed to issue a warning.

"Cameron - shield Allison." Cameron said to Duplicate Cameron through the door. "Get her away from the door. I'm going to blow it off with a plasma grenade."

It was Showtime.

I've Missed You

Sometimes the furthest person away
Is the one sitting right next to them
They see a piece of useless rock
Where they once saw a sparkling gem

What happens to everyone
Where does the future go
Maybe things went too fast
Maybe they went too slow

When going forward seems rough
It's easy to retreat to the past
But if the grass was really greener
Then why didn't it grow or last

Perhaps the real key to it all
Is what lies within each person
No one can see any self fault
Which seems to make things worsen

Every so often some can see the light
They don't wish to split or bid adieu
They hang on to who they once knew
And say I've missed you

Nobody