Chapter 415

Lifeboat

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In Some Future: Duplicate Cameron

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In Some Future: Cameron Prime

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It took Cameron longer than she would have liked, but she got the beacon up and running on the TDE pad. They began to send out a low energy signal. The hope was River, or her team at her base, would search for a signal to lock onto. The goal was to have a 'lifeboat' sent. It should give them a solid frequency and location. The beacon also squawked the time and date.

There was no guarantee anything was going to work. If the beacon didn't attract a 'lifeboat', they were going to be 'in some future' for a long, long time. It wasn't what Cameron wanted for Savannah.

One of the girls, or one of the four 'Camerons' was always at the location. Cameron or Duplicate Cameron tried to be there as much as possible. They wanted to take the risk and not have it fall on anyone else. They were all instructed to record what the contact frequency was, and enter the 'lifeboat'. If no one was there when the 'lifeboat' arrived, the same frequency probably wouldn't be tried again for quite some time. There couldn't be any delay if an energy bubble appeared.

It should be exactly what Cameron did to visit River's future when she got her TDE up and working. It was when River sent the energy bubble for her. Ginger or Sandy could fill in as well for one of them. Cameron would remodulate the frequencies from time to time. She often returned to the old ones. She discussed the procedure with River before she left. It all came down to their signals being on the same frequency at the same time and finding each other.

She believed there was a good starting point based upon what the original calculations were by River. Every frequency around the initial transfer would need to be tried, probably at a fraction of a percent at a time. The equipment at the Resistance base, or even River's future, would need time to rest between tries. If it was run continuously, it would overheat and destroy itself.

Cameron was sure the unstable Liquid Metal creature which was encountered in the past was picked up somehow by John Henry. It was when John and John Henry kept trying to send out the energy bubble and then bring it back before it was there for more than a second. It was a good concept, but the equipment needed to be modified to make it accurate and stable. They didn't have all of the variables under control to make everything precise. Anything short of a Liquid Metal Terminator probably wouldn't have survived at the time. It was possible it was damaged during the unstable transfer as it was.

She was sure everyone would search for a way to get Savannah back. She knew they arrived much later 'in some future' than anticipated when Savannah was with her. Savannah entered the energy bubble as it was almost formed. The last second change disrupted everything. At some point River would figure it out and start making adjustments.

Even with all the problems and the damage done to her, she was pleased she was able to locate the other set of Duplicates and Mrs. Weaver. It was her goal to find them and she did. She figured there would be a Skynet TDE at the location she arrived in so they could return home in a relatively short amount of time. It wasn't the case on several levels.

Savannah sought Cameron out. She became weary of ever getting back any time soon at this point. Month after month passed by, it seemed they were stuck. There were several power plants under construction but materials were scarce for them. They would need fuel to operate on. The fuel would need to be produced as well.

Cameron watched Savannah enter the room. She wore loose clothing and looked down at her belly when she pulled her shirt tight over it. It was clear to her what was inside of Savannah.

"Cameron, I think I'm starting to 'show'." Savannah said. "We've been here for almost five months. Should I still try to hide it from my mother?"

Cameron didn't tell her she was 'showing' for a few weeks already. She asked Savannah not to say anything. She hoped to be out of the future by now. It was down to decision time. It was all on her, even though she wasn't an active participant in how Savannah became pregnant. She orchestrated the 'cover-up'. It was time to come clean. It caused Savannah a lot of frustration to keep trying to hide it from everyone.

It was time to face the music. It wasn't going to be a good tune.

"No. We need to talk with your mother." Cameron said. "I'll take full responsibility. This is all my fault. I don't want her or anyone else to say anything negative to you at all. I'll take all the flak."

Savannah knew it wasn't true. Young Jesse and her both acted on their own. They impregnated each other. The children weren't for them. They wanted to help those who couldn't have their own children. It included the girls from the future as well as Cameron. They both figured they would probably have several each, and none of the children would be for them. When it came time for them to actually have children for themselves, they may not want to depending upon how the other pregnancies went. It might end up being an extremely negative experience for one or both of them. They both wondered if 'things' would get 'stretched out' before they were ever with a male the first time. She didn't want Cameron to worry.

"You didn't even know I did it." Savannah said. "It was my own doing."

Cameron was worried to death about what the time transfer would do to the baby or even Savannah. She was worried Savannah was now too far along in the pregnancy. The time transfer may cause her to miscarry at this point. With the old TDE, the time jump was hard on the body. She was sure it would induce labor upon arrival. Her biggest fear would be Savannah going into labor on the TDE pad several months before the baby was due to arrive. It was possible it would terminate right there in the TDE room. She experienced a glitch impulse as she thought about it. The improved TDE from River's designs was faster and less harsh on the body. As to what could happen, it was still unknown.

Savannah felt her actions were justified. She was worried about how far along she was with the pregnancy as well. She thought the same things Cameron did, even if it was something they didn't discuss. She also thought about the danger of trying to send an infant through the energy bubble if she delivered before they were rescued. If they were rescued. She also began to consider other possibilities. She wasn't sure how they would fly with Cameron. Cameron kept telling her she wasn't going to take her baby away from her. It wasn't how she saw any of it. Still, the baby growing inside of her began to call to her maternal instincts. She wanted all the facts laid out. They spent more time with the girls from the future in the past. They attempted for all of them to become pregnant. Every attempt was a failure. Allison always hung on longer than the others did. The end result was still the same.

"Cameron, I want you to tell my mother the girls can't get pregnant." Savannah said. "I mean they can get pregnant, but nothing ever sticks for more than a month or two. They've all tried multiple times. I want to bring Vanna with us. I want to bring all the girls and Duplicate Cameron too. I want you to lay it all out. We know it's a sad truth from our time. It's probably even worse here."

Cameron worried about the reaction the girls would have. In the past timeline, Vanna tried to go into combat so she would be killed in action. It was really suicide with honor. A glitch impulse shot through her hand as she recalled it all. It still bothered her. It would have been her fault since she was the one who provided Vanna with the genetic material to initiate the process. All of the girls there could react negatively. She was worried if any of them terminated, it was going to be her fault as well.

"It will be hard on them to know they can't get pregnant." Cameron said. "I know how hard it was on our girls. We all know what Vanna did and why."

Savannah remembered how Cameron went to Vanna and spoke with her. She wasn't angry at Vanna for doing what she did. She seemed to support her decision, even as she talked her out of it.

"You never scolded Vanna about it." Savannah said.

Cameron understood where Vanna was at personally at the time. She knew why she did it. She was at the edge more than a few times. She knew the finality of it if she crossed over. There were times when she thought she would. There were times when she tried but there was always some type of intervention. Savannah with her there now was another example. She also knew her actions and those of her other Duplicate made some bad decisions too. How could she blame anyone else for doing exactly what she wanted to do and tried to do.

"No, I didn't. It was because I know how she felt. I feel the same way often. I've done plenty of questionable, or even some stupid things myself." Cameron said. "We're here now with a Duplicate set of girls because of some of my poor decisions. Look at this mess we're in now. It all goes back to me. If I wouldn't have attempted to reach my future where I planned to be terminated, none of this would have happened. The Duplicate girls wouldn't exist and we wouldn't be here."

Savannah could see now, as she could then, it was a bad choice for Cameron to make. She was very disturbed at the time and unstable. It seemed like more of a mental breakdown than a bad decision. She didn't know if Cameron was really responsible, even if she was. It was past events which always weighed on her. They were usually propagated by others and Cameron was the one who needed to suffer the consequences. She was well aware of some of Cameron's episodes and the related problems which ensued from them.

"I was there. You were going to burn yourself up with a Thermite grenade. It was many years ago." Savannah said. "It was so many years ago for us, but not for the Duplicates. The girls all stood by you and were willing to suffer the same fate as you. They all love you, Cameron. It's something you can never forget."

Savannah remembered it all in detail now. She was just about to join the girls surrounding Cameron with the Thermite grenade. It seemed Cameron was going to burn all of them. She was sure Cameron wouldn't release the spoon if she joined them. She was willing to gamble her life then to save Cameron. She was on her way over when Cameron backed down. John Henry promised to deactivate her permanently instead. She prevented it from happening. She protected Cameron then, as she did now. Her only asset was herself.

Cameron could have done without the reminder of some of her past failures. It was a bad day which led to a bad series of events. It didn't 'fix' anything. Instead it altered everything and created even more problems. It made her wonder if she ever could actually 'fix' anything without creating even more problems. It didn't seem like it.

"For me, it's like it just happened. It all is, when I think of any of it." Cameron said as her hand started to glitch. "When I think of anything, it's like it just happened for me or to me."

Savannah moved over to Cameron. She took her hand and held her. She understood how it worked for Cameron. The past events were always intense. Time didn't dull them in her mind as they did for humans. For cyborgs it was like reliving the exact same thing again.

"Please, Cameron, don't go there. Think of me instead." Savannah said. "Think of the 'here and now'. I'll always be here for you. Think of all the things we've done and the good times we've experienced. There are more of those than there are of any bad things."

The glitch stopped and Cameron regained some composure. She didn't need to go down a rocky road right now. It wasn't how she wanted to face Mrs. Weaver. She already dreaded the repercussions which were sure to follow Savannah's revelation.

"Thank you, Savannah." Cameron said. "It was starting to pile up on me."

Savannah didn't think there was any other outcome going forward. She was ready for whatever the future brought. It was her destiny.

"I'll always be there for you, in both of the futures, and in the past, OUR future." Savannah said. "I love you, Cameron."

Savannah looked into Cameron's eyes. She still held her close. She drew closer slowly. Cameron didn't turn away. Their lips were about to touch….

"What's going on here?" Mrs. Weaver asked.

Savannah and Cameron's heads snapped around, the moment was lost.

Cameron was highly disappointed.

Savannah was a little upset at the interruption. It was her 'mother'. It was time now to lay everything out. She planned to do it a little more diplomatically, but the rude interruption caused her to spout it out instead.

"I was about to kiss Cameron." Savannah said. "I'm pregnant."

Cameron quickly looked at Savannah and then at Mrs. Weaver.

There was a long silence.

"What?" Mrs. Weaver asked.

Savannah could see her words may have hit home on several levels.

"I said, I was about to kiss Cameron, and I'm pregnant." Savannah repeated.

Mrs. Weaver didn't like the implications. She thought Savannah was better 'watched' than this. Maybe she would need to take over Savannah's security herself. There needed to be some accountability.

"When?" Mrs. Weaver asked. "How? Who?"

Savannah could see her 'mother' wanted to kill someone right now. Maybe it was every 'patents' initial reaction. She needed to make things clear fast before they got worse.

"I was pregnant when I got here, Mother." Savannah said. "It happened in Australia."

Mrs. Weaver looked at Cameron. She was the most likely culprit. She saw them 'close' when she entered the room. What was it all about?

"Were you behind this?" Mrs. Weaver asked.

Savannah knew it was all on her. Just like it was with every other pregnant teenager. The decisions were hers, even if they were facilitated directly or indirectly by Cameron.

"Cameron wasn't even there in Australia when it happened. She didn't know until we got here." Savannah said. "I didn't tell her. She found out on her own. It was when we were on the battlefield. I was responsible for the damage done to Cameron because I disrupted the energy bubble at the last moment. Everything which went wrong was my fault. Cameron protected me on the battlefield and on the domestic front. It was my own actions which created the problems both here and there. Cameron isn't responsible for any of it."

Mrs. Weaver's attitude seemed to soften some.

"Is all of that true?" Mrs. Weaver asked.

Cameron was still a little mystified how it all went down and why they were at where they were at now.

"Yes." Cameron said. "I was as surprised as you are. I still am. You don't know how upset I was when I found out, especially since we were on the battlefield. It's still very traumatic every time I think about it."

Mrs. Weaver didn't like the fact Savannah apparently was violated, even if she was a willing participant. She wanted some accountability. No, she wanted retribution.

"Who's the father?" Mrs. Weaver asked. "I need to know so I terminate the right person."

Savannah wanted the true nature of her actions known, all of them. She knew what she was doing on every level of the journey.

"It's not like that. I've never had sex, with a male." Savannah said.

Mrs. Weaver thought she heard it all, evidently not.

"Never with a male…?" Mrs. Weaver asked. "Does it mean…?"

Savannah didn't question her decisions. She would repeat all of them again if she could. She didn't know how explicit she should get with her exploits.

"Yes, Mother. It's my desire. It's what I wanted, what I want. I'm attracted to females." Savannah said. "Just like every other Savannah Weaver is. I've been with more than one."

Cameron didn't like the heat shifted to Savannah. It was time to put all the blame on herself. Savannah didn't need any headaches.

"You don't need to ask your teenage 'daughter' about her sex life." Cameron said. "I take full responsibility for what happened. It's my fault. She was under my watch and care when it happened. I was careless…."

Mrs. Weaver didn't even seem to hear Cameron. She was still focused on Savannah and what she just revealed. Some of it was good news. Maybe three parts of it were.

"I'm going to be a Grandmother?" Mrs. Weaver asked. "Savannah, this is great news. I'm sorry I was a little shocked at first. I'm even happier to know you remain untouched by any male."

Mrs. Weaver went over to Savannah and gave her a close hug. She actually looked very pleased and happy with the news.

Mrs. Weaver looked at Cameron. Savannah was about to take the 'prize' when she came in. It wasn't a moment too soon. She knew when Cameron 'bonded' with Savannah, it would be a permanent bond. She wanted to leave all the options open to herself until there was a safe functioning TDE.

Cameron was still unsure about the whole chain of events which just happened. Her guard was down and Savannah was right there. Savannah was so caring, loving, and so beautiful…. She was going to let Savannah 'take her' if the moment would have continued. In the past, she wanted to be with Vanna and Allison early on. She WANTED it. It was the same thing Duplicate Cameron felt and why she created her clones. It was to share with the girls in the only way she could. She did the same thing with Cammy, Camille, and Cam in the past for Savannah, Young Jesse, and Vanna.

She would have done the same for Allison, but she felt she owed Holly her appreciation for holding Duplicate Cameron's program for fifteen months, and never making a move on John the whole time he was alone, even if he was right in front of her. Holly even offered to allow Duplicate Cameron to use her chassis. It was something Duplicate Cameron couldn't bring herself to do. If John would have made his move on Holly first, it would have been a different story.

Now it almost happened with Savannah. Cameron knew now it would be Savannah who would be her first female 'experience'. Savannah truly was the 'Chosen One'. She didn't see any real problem with anything since she was actually a machine. She only masqueraded as a human female. She was still a very scary robot inside.

Savannah felt her actions were with merit. It wasn't a random act. It very focused and directed. Cameron wouldn't take her baby from her, but she was sure Vanna would. There were underlying facts which seemed unchangeable. She would put a little spin on her original intention.

"Both Young Jesse and I decided to get pregnant for our older selves." Savannah said. "None of the girls from the future can carry a baby to term. They've all tried quite a few times each and failed."

A new prospect popped into Mrs. Weaver's head with the revelation. It wasn't something she considered before. She made a few quick calculations. Everything seemed to fit.

"Young Jesse?" Mrs. Weaver asked. "The younger version of this Jesse? You're both about the same age."

Savannah didn't think bringing 'her Cammy' up was the thing to do at this point. She would just stick to where she was elsewhere. She did want to see what it was like to be with a male at least one time. She didn't think it would change her preference, but it might be something additional to add in from time to time.

"I felt very alone and lonely. I wasn't about to hurt Cameron and be with John. He would never touch me anyway. " Savannah said. "I did sort of try to find out. I'm not really sure why. It wasn't something I really wanted to do. Young Jesse is my girlfriend, we're lovers."

Cameron felt guilty. She was the one responsible for Savannah trying to make herself 'available' to John. She'd made the 'desire' part of Savannah's 'conditioning'. She wondered if it would have been a negative experience for Savannah or a positive one. Time would tell. It didn't seem to be a negative experience for Future Savannah and Future John. Then again Future Allison was the glue who held them all together.

Mrs. Weaver was a little worried about Vanna and the others going forward. Vanna pledged to remain at her side. She didn't think Vanna would be barren, or Allison, and Jesse too. She wanted to verify the prospect of the girls from the alternate future reproducing.

"Are you saying none of the girls here, the Duplicates, can have children?" Mrs. Weaver asked.

Cameron went over some of the past attempts with Vanna, Jesse, and Allison to try to give a better picture of events moving forward after several failures to remain pregnant. Some of the prior events to their arrival in the past were troubling to go over, but necessary.

"With all the multiple abuse, and some of the consensual activity which occurred since they were teenagers, none of them ever knew they were actually pregnant." Cameron said. "They all experienced several months of missed monthlies at times, but thought it was because of the poor nutrition. There was a pretty good chance they all conceived more than once, the three of them growing up. None made it past the first trimester. It was no different in the past when attempts were made."

Savannah thought a lot about the next part of her statement. Her mind was made up. She decided what she was going to do when she was about to kiss Cameron. The conversation only seemed to strengthen her resolve. It was time to lay it out. It was time for her to play the cards. She was the one who held the winning Ace.

"Mother, if you stay here in this timeline with Vanna and Allison, and I'm still here when this baby is born, I'm going to give it to Vanna as her own. It really is her 'own' if you think about it. The time transfer may injure or kill it anyway. I'm not willing to take the chance." Savannah said. "You'll have your 'daughter' Vanna, and your grandchild here with you. Both of them will be your responsibility going forward. Your grandchild will need to be your top priority over everything else. I want my baby protected by you."

Cameron looked at Savannah, she wanted the baby. Young Jesse and Claire were both pregnant as well, so maybe it would work out. She could see it would place some constraints on Mrs. Weaver going forward. She didn't think it was a bad thing either. She would talk to Savannah about it more. Now wasn't the proper time.

Mrs. Weaver contemplated slowing the construction of the power sources. It would be to keep Savannah there until the baby was born. She didn't want to dwell there. She wanted to know more.

"Have you told Vanna this yet?" Mrs. Weaver asked.

Savannah made a few decisions earlier. She was young and still healthy thanks to Cameron and everyone else.

"No, I just decided it when I was about to kiss Cameron." Savannah said. "I'm going to have one for Cameron as well when we get back. Just so you know ahead of time, I plan to use the same conception method, but I may try the traditional one."

Cameron and Savannah exchanged a quick glance. It was clear what the reference was.

Mrs. Weaver could see some more possibilities. She might need to harvest some genetic material herself. It wouldn't be hard to do. It was a very simple act. She observed males finish in as quickly as twenty seconds before during her intelligence gathering outings. She could see none of the females were satisfied with the encounters. She hoped it would be better for Savannah if she attempted the traditional method.

"Who's the father?" Mrs. Weaver asked. "Is it John?"

Cameron knew there was no way around the next part. She still thought her original motivation was sound.

"Yes, he doesn't know." Cameron said. "I sent some 'genetic material' to Australia for Young Jesse. It was supposed to be for when she was older. The girls moved up the timetable and failed to notify me. I was surprised as you were. I still am."

Mrs. Weaver didn't possess the same skills as Cameron did in this regard.

"Is it a boy or a girl?" Mrs. Weaver asked.

Savannah glanced at Cameron. She was sure she knew.

"I haven't asked Cameron yet." Savannah said.

Mrs. Weaver wanted to know more. It seemed important, even if it wasn't. The baby would still be whatever it already was. She looked at Cameron.

"Do you know?" Mrs. Weaver asked.

Cameron didn't want to cause a rift. She felt it was Savannah's decision to ask or know.

"Yes." Cameron said. "When Savannah wants to know, I'll tell her. She hasn't asked yet. It can be a very personal decision for some human females. I plan to respect Savannah's wishes."

Savannah wasn't sure she wanted to know yet. There was another issue she felt would be more important going forward. She wanted the bond of the infant to go where it needed to.

"Can you manipulate the hormone levels in Vanna so she can lactate?" Savannah asked. "I want her to be able to nurse the baby herself, maybe Allison too. It wouldn't hurt to have some backup. I may not be here long after the baby is born."

Cameron tilted her head slightly. There were actually several ways to accomplish the procedure. She would make sure Cammy started a manual 'hands on' program today. She knew it was possible to make the body respond to the 'demand' for lactation placed on it artificially.

Mrs. Weaver controlled all of the medical stores there were from the Resistance and from Skynet. She thought it was an excellent idea from Savannah. She wanted to have an additional option besides Vanna and Allison.

"I have access to the medical supplies to do it." Mrs. Weaver said. "I believe we can do it. Jesse may want to as well. I know most of the females here have trouble producing. Three would be better than one or two for the baby."

Savannah didn't want to get too far ahead of herself.

"I'll go with Cameron and run all this by the three of them." Savannah said. "I don't even know if they'll want to do it. I don't want any coercion on anyone's part. It has to be everyone's decision on their own accord. I want everyone to respect my wishes."

Mrs. Weaver wanted one of them to at least want it. She did.

"They better." Mrs. Weaver said. "This is the best news ever. I'm going to be a Grandmother…."

Later on:

It was unexpected when it happened.

Cameron was on watch in the TDE room. She just made an adjustment to the frequency the TDE squawked. The arcing and flashing started. The beacon worked. An energy bubble began to form. The lifeboat was here! She quickly left a message which noted the time and frequency and stepped into the bubble.

The arcing and flashing ended.

Cameron was gone….

Closing monologue by Cameron:

Lifeboat

In the darkness of life's ship
Many will seek out a lighthouse
They hope it will guide them
Away from a dirty louse

The rocks may loom ahead
Unseen in the dark or night
If they don't wreck the ship
They'll still cause a lot of fright

The fog rolls in and obscures the view
Soon there can be heard breakers
The ship will be run aground
Everything goes to the takers

Maybe in the doldrums
One will encounter a pirate ship
Think of what will happen
As away the clothes they strip

One grows weary of life's ship
They want to escape and stay afloat
They look at those around them
Who will be their lifeboat

Nobody

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In Some Future: Duplicate Cameron

In Some Future: Cameron Prime

Events continue in Chapter 418

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