Chapter 451

Temporal Tales

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Resistance Base - Current Timeline:

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John was in the Command Center. He reviewed all ongoing Resistance operations. It was a quiet time the last few days. He figured that would change soon. He looked at John Henry.

"What do you have for me today?" John asked.

John Henry was aware of the massive energy use going on at Cameron's base.

"Cameron has been running her TDE quite a bit." John Henry said.

John frowned. He was sure there was a problem of some type. It seemed Cameron created a lot of them herself. He figured it would end up on his doorstep soon enough.

"Do we want to know?" John asked.

John Henry didn't want to get involved. He didn't like to take the heat for Cameron's actions.

"It's doubtful." John Henry said. "I think we all know Cameron is doing what she thinks is best."

John did know that Cameron believed that. Whether that was actually true or not, remained to be determined on more than a few things. He still liked to give her some leeway.

"I do understand that." John said. "Sometimes I wonder."

John Henry knew Cameron carried a lot on her back. She felt responsible for everyone. Some things were out of her hands.

"John, she's worried about the girls and the future, all of them." John Henry said. "All of the futures matter to her."

John hadn't seen Cameron for a few days. He didn't know she'd been in her future for almost a year since he'd last seen her. He hoped to spend a little 'sack time' with her soon.

"What about the present?" John asked. "It should matter too."

John Henry thought the present spoke for itself.

"I'd say you and her have done a good job so far." John Henry said. "Judgment Day hasn't happened."

John checked the duty assignments. Bob wasn't on any of them.

"Where's Bob?" John asked. "What's he assigned to?"

John Henry didn't think Bob was assigned to anything. He hadn't made any assignment. He was at Cameron's base.

"He was called to Cameron's base earlier." John Henry said.

John was immediately alert. That sounded like trouble. He remembered John Henry said they were using the TDE a lot at Cameron's base.

"Did something happen or go wrong?" John asked.

Bob walked up as they spoke.

"Negative." Bob said.

John was relieved to see Bob. Maybe he could get some insight.

"What's Cameron up to?" John asked.

Bob didn't see anything wrong with what Cameron was up to.

"She's in her future fighting Skynet." Bob said. "I was just there."

John thought Bob made a joke. He remembered that Bob didn't joke much. He looked serious. Now he was even more worried.

"Who's with her?" John asked.

Bob was aware everyone was back. He'd just watched Holly return before he left. She was the last one there besides Cameron.

"Nobody…." Bob said. "She's alone."

John sucked in his breath slowly. He didn't want to snap at Bob. He wanted to make sure he understood everything.

"Cameron is in her future fighting Skynet by herself?" John asked.

Bob thought he'd been clear.

"Affirmative…." Bob said.

That was too much for John. He hated when Cameron was alone. He hated it worse to know she was in the future alone. He wanted to know how this could be.

"What the Hell, Bob?" John asked. "Did she send you back?"

Bob was sure she did. He still seemed to have a few blank spots.

"Affirmative…." Bob said.

John was on his feet now. He didn't want Cameron there alone. He'd go himself if he could. That didn't work out so well the last time he'd tried that.

"How do we get her more help?" John asked. "I can't go."

Bob believed what Cameron was after was 'personal' to her. She wanted to be alone.

"We don't need to give her any more help." Bob said. "She's challenged Skynet herself, alone."

Now John was worried more than ever. He knew the lengths Duplicate Cameron took to stop Skynet.

"Damn. Are those four nukes still operational in that timeline?" John asked.

John Henry made the calculations. They should still work. He didn't know if there would be any radiation leakage.

"I think that would be most likely." John Henry said. "That's if she hasn't already used them in some other timeline."

That was information John could have done without. It only added to his fears.

"I KNEW she would use them." John said. "She's going to do it again. I'd stop her if I could."

John Henry thought that seemed self evident then.

"That's why she must be doing this in her future, so you can't get to her." John Henry said. "She doesn't like to be interfered with."

Bob wondered if he could have done more.

"What can we do?" Bob asked.

John sat back down. Cameron played by her own rules.

"Pray." John said. "There are no other options."

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Young Residence - Current Timeline:

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Claire was only gone a few hours from home. It was nine months for her in the other timeline, the future. The living conditions were a little less 'refined' than here…. In reality, the future sucked. Before she had the baby she'd asked Future Allison to return to this timeline with her. Future Allison said she wanted to but her place was at Future John's side in that future. Everything there was exactly like Cameron described it.

She knew if it was possible that Judgment Day must never happen. The future was an awful place to live. She couldn't imagine the future before Skynet was decimated. That must have been a real Hell trying to survive.

Claire heard the stories about the Scavenger 'problem'. It wasn't as bad as what Vanna experienced in her future but bad enough. Future Allison never talked about it, so she never asked. It was better if a mother didn't know about all the terrible things that may have happened to her daughter. Now she thought about them anyway. She imagined the girls being held down by a group of men as they lined up…. She needed to clear her mind.

There were a few bright spots in that future.

Claire thought back on one 'adventure'. She met Future Savannah. She was so much like Vanna. Then again they were the same person - sort of. They all started out as their Savannah. She saw Future Allison and their Savannah go off together…. That was when she tried to get 'closer' to Future Savannah. It seemed like the right time and the right circumstances. She hungered to be with her daughter's lover. Besides she looked like Hanna. She missed her too.

"The girls are away." Claire said.

Future Savannah knew what was about to happen. She allowed it to happen. She wanted Future Allison to be happy. She appreciated the sacrifices that Savannah endured to assist her.

"I noticed." Future Savannah said.

Claire unbuttoned her top some as Future Savannah watched. She wanted to make her desire clear.

"That leaves the women alone." Claire said.

Future Savannah licked her lips lightly. She'd wanted to be with Claire from the moment she saw her. One thing worried her; it was more than Future Allison.

"What about your Metal girlfriend?" Future Savannah asked. "They can get a little possessive at times."

Claire made sure Holly-Hanna was away before she made her move.

"She's away." Claire said as she moved closer to Future Savannah.

Future Savannah looked around and undid her top.

"You know Allison would kill me for this." Future Savannah said.

Claire slipped Future Savannah's hand inside her shirt. It drew a positive response.

"You can be assured I won't tell her." Claire said.

Claire gave Future Savannah a hungry kiss.

"I won't either." Future Savannah said.

Future Savannah stood and walked to the door and closed it. As she turned around she slipped her top off. She was pleased to see Claire was already naked on the bed….

Hanna walked up to Claire and broke her line of thought. That was too bad. It was just starting to get good.

"Summer's resting, Allison - Young Allison is at the park and protected." Hanna said.

Claire was excited reliving her conquest of Future Savannah. Now Hanna was here. They looked almost identical. That was good enough for her.

"I'm pleased to see you're back in your own chassis." Claire said as she kissed her.

Hanna knew that Holly shared with Claire more than a few times. She allowed it for her chance to get a crack at Future Allison. There was 'enough' for everyone to share so it didn't seem like a big deal. She'd give Claire a choice right now.

"I'd like to know if you would you prefer it if I were to Resequence my sheath to be the same appearance as Holly's sheath?" Hanna asked. "We could be identical."

Claire liked that idea but she would rather be with Holly as 'Holly' and Hanna as 'Hanna'. She could have the best of both worlds that way.

"No. Holly is beautiful and so are you." Claire said. "I want to be with you as you are and always will be."

That was what Hanna wanted to hear. She scooped Claire up in her arms and carried her to the bedroom.

"Prove it." Hanna said.

Claire slipped her clothes off. She looked down at herself. She needed a little more recovery time. She wanted to offer Hanna her best.

"I apologize for my body being a little – out of shape." Claire said. "This was my third baby…."

Hanna didn't see that as a problem at all. She knew that was the one area the human body was superior to her chassis. It could reproduce. A living 'person' could be created from two microscopic organic objects.

"Your body is amazing. You carried your daughter's baby and provided it to a different future version of your daughter and Future John." Hanna said. "That's more than my chassis can do."

Claire was aware she done more than a little experimentation in the future. She'd done a lot there before they left. She was aware that the 'Hanna' in Holly looked the other way.

"Thank you, Hanna." Claire said. "I know you allowed me to experience some 'new things' in the future."

Hanna got what she wanted through Holly. What Holly shared, she shared while in control of Holly's chassis. They shared their files too and relived every moment each of them shared with everyone as themselves and the other one.

"Everyone sacrifices for John Connor." Hanna said. "I sacrificed for you because I love you. I wanted you to be happy for what you did for Future Allison. Now it is just us – forever."

Claire understood Hanna just told her to take it back a notch. That was going to be hard to do. She may have done a little more than Hanna knew.

"I understand…." Claire said. "I love you too, Hanna."

Claire wondered if Hanna knew that she still kept her eye on Vanna….

She liked what Future Savannah offered. She knew Vanna wanted to share with her. She thought of it a little more and realized she wasn't that much older than - Savannah. She didn't have a clue her daughter here currently shared with Savannah as she thought about it.

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Cameron's Base Current Timeline:

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Allison had her eye on Savannah for a long time. In the future 'things' happened earlier for everyone, whether they wanted them to happen or not.

Savannah wanted to be with Allison as long as she could remember. It happened first with Duplicate Allison 'in some future'. It happened again with Future Allison in Cameron's future. Now it happened in the present with Allison.

Allison looked over at Savannah with a big smile on her face.

Savannah knew she'd jumped the gun but Young Allison was still too young. Now she'd been with three versions of her plus the Metal girls with her same appearance.

"I've wanted that for so long, Allison. I wanted be with you." Savannah said.

Allison thought of her younger self and felt a little guilty but not much. She would teach Savannah everything she liked and Savannah would be able to teach the same things to Young Allison later on. She never doubted they would be together at some point.

"As have I, Savannah. You're grown now. You're another two years older than you were a month ago and you've had two babies." Allison said. "I know we shouldn't have but it was just the right thing to do. You look exactly like My Savannah – Vanna, when she first took me. You're even more beautiful."

Savannah looked into Allison big brown puppy dog eyes. They were full of love and maybe a little lust. That was fine too. She felt the same way. She touched her breasts. They were a little smaller right now thanks to Allison efforts.

"Thanks. I experienced some pressure build up anyway." Savannah said. "You fixed that problem, in several areas."

Allison and Savannah giggled.

They cleaned up and started to dress.

They heard the TDE power up.

Allison looked in the direction of that sound and sucked in her breath. She didn't feel bad about what just happened but she wanted to see Holly.

"Maybe Holly and Cameron are back." Allison said.

Savannah heard the TDE operate more than once as they dressed.

"I heard it run a few times." Savannah said. "Someone must be back."

Allison ran from the room. Savannah just helped her not 'stress out' over Holly for a short time. She really needed that. Her heart skipped a beat, maybe two. There she was. She saw Holly was there. She ran to Holly and they embraced and kissed. She touched Holly all over. She wanted to make sure she wasn't dreaming.

"I was so worried about you." Allison said. "I thought Cameron got you damaged or something worse happened. I was worried you might even have been terminated."

Holly tilted her head slightly. She wondered why Allison would think that. She was only gone from here for a short time even if she spent two months in the future again this last time.

"No, Cameron pulled me out before the trouble started. She would never let anything happen to me." Holly said. "Cameron is the greatest."

Allison looked at Savannah.

Savannah knew Allison wanted to use her room again with Holly this time.

"Cammy and I are going out for awhile." Savannah said. "I need to get a few things."

Allison smiled at Savannah and led Holly to Savannah's room. She started to undress Holly. She looked at her naked beauty. She loved everything on Holly's sheath.

"Your body is stunning, Holly." Allison said. "The best part is it will stay like that forever."

Holly wanted that too. She would never let Allison see her damaged or disfigured.

"I hope so." Holly said. "I would rather terminate than have it spoiled for you. I want you to have the best."

Allison knew what they were about to do. She also knew 'Cameron' was on Holly's chip. She hoped for a 'twofer'.

"Is 'Cameron' still on your chip?" Allison asked.

Holly offered to allow 'Cameron' to take control after they'd finished a few times. 'Cameron' declined.

"Yes." Holly said. "She's firewalled herself to allow us privacy."

Allison was a little disappointed. Something else was on her mind.

"Did 'Hanna' do anything with Future Allison?" Allison asked.

Holly thought about lying. Maybe there were other things she would need to lie about. Too many lies were bad.

"No, she didn't." Holly said. "Not at first."

Allison didn't see it as that big of a deal.

"I figured she would." Allison said.

Holly still had a few more secrets. She'd 'traded' lovers with Hanna.

"I wouldn't let her at first." Holly said. "I did later on."

Allison smiled. She knew Holly only allowed 'Hanna' to be copied on her chip like she'd done with 'Cameron' later on.

"I knew you were 'in there' with her." Allison said. "I KNEW it."

Holly didn't like secrets. She knew Cameron kept too many of them, even if they were of a different nature. She looked into Allison's eyes.

"Allison, I was with Future Allison." Holly said. "I couldn't help it. She was 'you' to me."

Allison figured that was a given. She found this a good time to 'come clean' too. Everyone would be in a more 'forgiving mood'.

"I was with Savannah." Allison said.

Holly didn't see that as anything new. Vanna was her true mate.

"You are often." Holly said.

Allison wanted to make herself clear.

"No. I mean with Savannah not Vanna, our Savannah." Allison said.

Holly was surprised. She threw out what she thought might be a game changer.

"I was with your mother." Holly said.

Allison didn't catch what she meant.

"That's what the 'Hanna' in you was for." Allison said. "That was part of the deal."

Holly felt a little guilty. She knew some humans had a 'hang up' about their parents. She wanted to make herself clear.

"No, I was with her as myself." Holly said. "I didn't tell her."

Allison wasn't really bothered by that. Her mother was young and pretty. She could see she was also given another 'out' to come clean.

"I bet she knew it was you." Allison said. "You two are 'different'. I mean Hanna and you."

Holly was surprised Allison wasn't upset. It took a second or two to sink in what Allison just actually said.

"Do you mean you and Hanna have…?" Holly asked.

Allison smiled and shrugged her shoulders.

"I've always been active, Holly." Allison said. "I'm driven to 'experiment'."

Holly contemplated everything that was just revealed and said.

"Are we supposed to be angry at each other now?" Holly asked.

Allison gave Holly a kiss. Things worked out better than she could have expected.

"You would think so but I'm not. We all love each other." Allison said. "We all know who we 'belong to' at the end of the day. It never hurts to share a little love. Life is short. The business we're in can make it a lot shorter."

Holly was very relieved to hear everything was OK.

"Thank you, Allison." Holly said. "It felt so right when it happened."

Allison thought of her adventures. They all seemed right when they happened.

"I know." Allison said. "It always does…."

Holly was very happy to be back.

"Love is beautiful, Allison." Holly said. "Teach me more."

Allison tried not to laugh.

"You seem to be learning pretty good on your own." Allison said.

Holly wasn't sure she was to 'blame' for any of it. Allison was her 'first'.

"I have an experienced and promiscuous teacher." Holly said.

Allison blushed.

"Thanks…." Allison said. "I think."

Holly wanted to ask about Jesse the next time her and Allison hooked up…. She wanted to 'experiment' with Jesse before she and Sheila shared.

That was another adventure she was willing to try. Actually there were a lot of them she wanted to try now. She understood the 'hunger' all the girls felt and shared. It was all very beautiful.

Tales

Words are just sound
Actions are what are real
Lies are just another way
For a person to steal

Lying is worse than stealing
It steals a person's trust
For a relationship to move forward
Trust is more than a must

Without absolute trust
A relationship will rust
The final end result
Will simply be dust

There are many things
That some must hide
They don't take responsibility
They know others will chide

By one's very actions
Into their own coffin they drive nails
Everything is soon off of the rails
As they continue to spin tall tales

Nobody