Chapter 606

I Was Not Joking

John and Savannah were both aware that whoever Cameron let go of first wouldn't be the one she loved the most. They both wanted to be the last one Cameron hugged. They both also didn't want to hurt the other one by that happening either.

They heard some noise in the hall. It was a 'discussion' of some sort.

"Trouble…." John and Savannah both said simultaneously.

John and Savannah both slipped out of Cameron's hug at the same time. Both were aware what they were doing and tried not to hurt each other. They also both knew it would have been Savannah that Cameron would have held longer.

The noise grew louder. It wasn't an argument but more a discussion of concern.

The voices grew distinct.

They were female voices.

"Get in there, NOW." Jesse said.

Jesse ushered Gail along. She all but pushed her into the lab.

Gail heard the others talking before they'd entered.

Gail was only half dressed. It was impressive for John and Savannah to see Gail's top open. She really packed quite a 'pair'.

Jesse was surprised to see them in the lab.

"Hello, everyone." Jesse said. "I didn't expect to see anyone here."

They all exchanged pleasantries with each other.

Gail became apprehensive when she saw that Savannah was there. She tried to turn to leave. She didn't want Savannah to see her less than perfect.

"STOP." Jesse said.

Gail looked uneasy.

"I'm fine." Gail said.

Jesse wanted to explain what was going on.

"Gail has some battle damage." Jesse said.

Gail's words hit home with Cameron. She'd used them many times herself.

"I do as well." Cameron said.

Cameron could see Jesse and especially Gail were both distressed. That brought her back around. Her earlier apprehension and uneasiness was gone. There were others she needed to help.

Vanna appeared a few seconds later. She looked a little sleepy.

"I came as soon as I got dressed." Vanna said.

Jesse looked over and smiled.

"Undressed would have worked too." Jesse said.

Everyone laughed.

Vanna was surprised to see Cameron, John and Savannah were in the lab as well. Jesse only told her about Gail.

Vanna looked at both Cameron and Gail. It seemed someone didn't report everything accurately.

"Are both of you damaged?" Vanna asked. "There was no report of anything more than minor damage from either of you."

'Savannah never complains.' Cameron and Gail both thought.

Cameron didn't want John to see her. She also noted the way he took in the view on Gail.

"John, Everything is under control, why don't you get some rest." Cameron said.

Cameron basically just told John to leave. They all knew Cameron didn't like John to see her less than perfect.

It was the same feeling Gail felt about Savannah. She wasn't sure why other than it was her appearance. Then again, she knew Savannah would touch her to help her.

Vanna didn't need any headaches. It was time to get to work.

"You know the drill, John." Vanna said. "Nothing's different. Scram."

John was hesitant to leave. He still didn't think he needed to other than it was what Cameron wanted.

Cameron made a point to look at John, Savannah, Vanna, Jesse and then back to John.

John knew what was coming next. He'd waited too long to leave.

Cameron wanted to offer John some variety and a choice.

"There are others here who are undamaged if you desire comfort." Cameron said. "Any of them are a worthy supplement."

John headed for the door and departed. He noted Cameron said 'supplement' this time not 'replacement'. That was different. He also thought it was even better. Cameron never let up. She kept hitting home with the same ideas.

Savannah, Vanna and Jesse smiled at each other.

Cameron looked more than a little distressed. She wanted them to take her seriously.

"I was not joking…." Cameron said. "Please…."

Gail tried to rescue the situation. She took her top off now and removed her pants. That quickly refocused everyone attention.

Everyone was reminded she was the biggest on the top and the smallest on the bottom.

"Let's get started." Gail said.

Jesse moistened her lips slightly.

"When we're done here, I plan too…." Jesse said.

That broke the tension in the room and everyone laughed.

Everyone went to work….

The damage was always sobering to all of them. Jesse wasn't used to seeing Gail damaged. It was a little traumatic for her but she was aware how things worked. It was nothing new in reality. She'd dealt with plenty of damaged Terminators.

Gail remembered Savannah told her before that Jesse would love her no less if she was damaged. She saw this was true and it seemed to actually make Jesse love her more. She hoped it made Savannah feel the same way. It also showed her that Jesse and the others really cared about her and her well being.

John started on his way to go back to his room. He was in the hall near his door.

He saw Savannah walking towards him. Vanna was behind her and someone else was behind Vanna. They'd just left the Command Center.

Wait.

He just left Savannah and Vanna in the lab only a short time ago. They were dressed differently too. That could only mean it was someone different.

"Anna?" John asked. "Hanna?"

They both smiled at him.

"Yes." They both said.

Someone squeezed between them.

"Hello, John."

John looked in disbelief.

It was 'Cameron' as a young teenager. They looked identical other than that.

John could see Young Allison was growing fast. His eyes lingered on where the growth could be noticed. He noticed.

"Allison?" John asked.

He was perplexed by the whole thing.

Young Allison smiled. She was confident in herself.

"It all needed to start somewhere." Young Allison said. "I've monitored all the events of today and I've come to see Cameron and Savannah."

John wondered why.

"You too." Young Allison quickly added as an afterthought.

John knew it was late or early.

"It's three o'clock in the morning." John said.

John heard the stories about what Cameron planned for Young Allison. He wondered if that was why they were here. He hoped not…. Well, he was open to some of the things. He looked at Young Allison again and thought of the movie. He was up to some of the things with that thought. Isn't that what Cameron just told him two minutes ago? He needed to 'check' himself. He really was 'up' about it now with those latest thoughts. He needed to refocus. Cameron was a bad influence on him.

Anna wanted to set the stage and keep everyone focused.

"Allison was very concerned about Cameron and Savannah." Anna said. "She asked to come see them."

John was going to ask if she shouldn't be in bed and if her parents knew she was out this late. Somehow that seemed like a bad idea.

Anna didn't like the way John started to look at Young Allison.

"Don't worry about it." Anna said as she cut his thoughts off. "Go back to bed."

John didn't want to get into it with 'another Cameron'.

"It was nice to see all of you." John said.

Anna ushered Young Allison away but Young Allison managed to turn and wave bye to John.

Anna turned back and winked at him.

John made a hasty retreat to his room and locked the door. Who knew what Cameron or one of her clones would pull next? He didn't want to find out. He thought about moving a chair under the door handle to make it even more difficult to open the door. He wouldn't put anything past Cameron.

Now with Cameron out of the picture for at least a day and someone on his mind, it seemed like the inevitable was about to happen. It was bedtime. He looked forward to sweet dreams.

Vanna and Savannah started on Cameron.

Cameron asked Savannah to assist Gail first. She was aware what Gail did and why and wanted to 'reward' Gail.

Savannah understood Cameron's thinking.

Jesse helped Savannah. Gail was a little nervous at first but soon realized the girls wanted to help her and her damage didn't matter to them. It was part of the job.

They finished up with Gail. Savannah gave her a final check and said she would be as good as new in a couple of days.

Savannah thanked Gail again for watching over her.

Jesse and Gail left. Gail looked back at Savannah and smiled.

Savannah thought Gail looked really pretty when she smiled. She didn't smile much. She turned her attention to Cameron.

Cameron watched Gail and Jesse go. She knew they both wanted Savannah. It didn't bother her. No sooner were they out the door than she turned and looked back at the door. There were voices outside.

Anna, Young Allison and Hanna walked in.

"Surprise." Young Allison said.

Everyone did look surprised. It was real late or real early.

Cameron smiled.

"This is a surprise." Cameron said. "It's one I like. Hello, Allison."

Young Allison moved up to give Cameron a hug. She saw Savannah was right next to her and reached out to hug both of them at the same time.

Savannah took the embrace and held it. It reminded of doing the same thing with John and Cameron earlier in the lab.

Young Allison looked at Cameron's nude figure. She liked the way it looked. She knew one day soon she was going to look like that - hopefully without the bullet wounds.

She'd been very concerned and troubled by the various events that Savannah and Cameron went through earlier. There were several major incidents. Her mother was even more traumatized by them.

"I was very worried about both of you today." Young Allison said. "I asked Anna to bring me to see you both."

Savannah gave Anna a stern look. She didn't think Young Allison should've been brought the Resistance base at this time.

"That's really sweet, Allison, but it is the middle of the night." Savannah said. "You need your rest."

Young Allison looked a little indignant.

"You're up." Young Allison said.

Savannah figured making repairs was a pretty good reason to be up still. She hadn't gotten back that long ago either.

"We're repairing some damage to Cameron now and finished with Gail earlier, she just left." Vanna said. "We're almost finished."

Vanna gave Hanna a stern look as well.

Young Allison looked over Cameron's naked form.

"Cameron, how many times were you shot?" Young Allison asked.

Cameron didn't have a problem with it. She wanted Young Allison to see the reality of the future. She knew that Young Allison looked over Cammy and even did a live fire test to see what it was like to actually shoot someone.

"It was fourteen this time." Cameron said.

Everyone was a little surprised at the next statement.

"You should have reported it or notified someone." Young Allison said. "We saw you change pants."

Savannah was pleased Young Allison subtly gave Cameron an admonishment. Not many people would have done that. She was also worried about something else.

"Is that why you're here?" Savannah asked a little more than worried.

Savannah was afraid they came to take Young Allison into the past. There was no way she was ever going to let them, especially Cameron, take Young Allison into River's future….

Young Allison looked at Savannah.

"Yes." Young Allison said. "I was worried about both of you."

Cameron could see Young Allison look her over. She asked Young Allison to inspect her damage closely before she got dressed. If they been alone she would have shown Young Allison anything she wanted to see in detail. They were the same anyway. She just had a little more up top.

Young Allison couldn't take her eyes off Cameron as she dressed. Even with some damage, Cameron was stunning. She could hardly wait for the day she could look that beautiful. She hoped she could look that beautiful. She also wanted to have more involvement. It was time she got into the daily flow of operations. She could move into her room which was next to Savannah's room or even move in with Savannah. That would be her first choice.

"Next time, I want to help." Young Allison said.

Savannah wasn't sure if Young Allison was talking about the repairs or the combat. She knew if she asked Young Allison would say 'both'. She wanted to put the breaks on both of those things.

"You don't need to start doing that yet." Savannah said.

Young Allison looked at Savannah. Her eyes went from the top to the bottom and back up again on Savannah.

"I want to be ready for when I get back." Young Allison said. "I'll be ready for a lot of 'things' then."

The room went deathly silent.

Cameron's phone rang. Seconds later so did Anna's and Hanna's.

Savannah and Vanna heard only one side of the conversation.

Cameron looked at Young Allison before she spoke.

"Hello, Claire." Cameron said and listened. "No, I'm not doing that yet."

Pause.

"When Holly and Allison are done talking to Hanna and Anna you can discuss this with them." Cameron said. "I've been out on operations all day. I only got back a little while ago."

Pause.

"I'm having some battle damage repaired." Cameron said. "Savannah is undamaged physically."

Pause.

"Yes, I do know she's been losing weight." Cameron said.

Young Allison walked up and held out her hand for Cameron's phone.

Cameron looked at Young Allison. She was pleased Young Allison 'demanded' the phone without demanding it.

Young Allison looked at the group and turned her back to them.

"Mom, hang up. You're embarrassing me." Young Allison said.

Pause.

"Mom, it IS going to happen." Young Allison said.

Pause.

"Mom, you know it is the 'Natural Order'." Young Allison said.

Pause.

"OK, Mom, chill out." Young Allison said. "I know it's late or early or whatever. I'll come back tomorrow then."

Pause.

"Of course I'll still be the same age." Young Allison said.

Pause.

"Look, Cameron is shot up and Savannah's exhausted." Young Allison said.

Pause.

"I'm going to be going with them soon and assist them." Young Allison said. "I'll protect both them and John."

Pause.

"Even if it was a bad idea, you know it is still going to happen anyway." Young Allison said.

Savannah didn't care for the direction and tone of the phone call.

Savannah walked over to Young Allison and held her hand out for the phone. She'd heard enough of all of this. It was time to take control.

"Claire, this is Savannah. I'm really sorry about all of this." Savannah said.

Pause.

"No, I'll personally make sure she is in bed within fifteen minutes." Savannah said. "I promise."

Pause.

"I'll bring her back tomorrow, exactly the same way she is now." Savannah said. "I promise."

Pause.

"I'll see you tomorrow." Savannah said.

Pause.

"Yes, I guess you can still trust someone…." Savannah said.

Savannah looked at the others in the lab one by one.

Pause.

"Bye." Savannah said.

Savannah looked at Anna and Cameron and silently took Young Allison away. Savannah let them know Young Allison was off limits for any last minute 'plans'.

Nobody was going to question that. They were all pleased to see the 'Natural Order' assert itself.

Sheila and Ally were still out. They'd been to four different locations. They went through everything from top to bottom. So far they hadn't found a single Gray or a Terminator. They gathered all the intel they could. Most of what they'd found were living quarters. Each of them had one bunk with a rope at all four corners. It was clear the Grays needed to restrain their female company down. It was a carryover from the treatment of captured Resistance females in the future.

"Maybe these blokes are all terminated." Sheila said.

Ally hoped so.

"We've set up a few surprises if anyone turns up." Ally said. "With all the activity today and yesterday maybe none are left."

Sheila looked at the one bunk.

"It worried me that none of them actually had a female in them." Sheila said. "I think they dumped all the girls before they went out."

Ally came to the same conclusion.

"They were most likely terminated." Ally said.

They left and went to the final destination that they had a location for.

They did a drive by.

"There are two of those white vans parked on the side." Ally said.

Sheila knew this current group seemed to have a fleet of them.

"Maybe we'll find something here." Sheila said.

They parked two blocks away and walked back.

They paused at the side of the gate. It was closed.

"It looks like a camera on the side." Sheila said.

Ally looked.

"This is the first place with them." Ally said. "There will be more."

They retreated back two buildings. They contacted CamNet and were provided with satellite photos of the area. It gave them a better plan of action. The security cameras were not online or linked to anything other than the building itself. Otherwise CamNet would have been able to loop the feeds. They carried a device like the one Cameron used earlier at the building where she ran into the three HK Tracks. That would allow CamNet to control the system.

They moved onto the property of the building next to the target location. They moved along the side where there was a large block wall that separated the properties.

Ally looked at Sheila and jumped up. She caught the top of the wall and pulled herself up so she could look over the side.

"There's a blind spot here like we thought." Ally whispered.

Sheila took one look around them and jumped up too.

"It looks clear." Sheila said.

They both pulled themselves up and rolled flat over the top of the wall and dropped down to the other side. They came down between the two parked white vans.

Sheila and Ally moved between the two white vans and headed for the security camera. It faced away from them at this point. Sheila placed the device on it after Ally boosted her up.

CamNet contacted them three seconds later. She'd taken control of the security system.

The Metal girls moved around the building but stayed up close to it. There were a dozen vehicles parked in the back. They all looked in operating condition.

Everything was locked.

"There's no exterior roof ladder." Sheila said.

Ally noticed that.

"That means there's an internal one. With a roof access." Ally said.

Sheila looked at the drain pipe on the building.

"You first, love." Sheila said.

Ally grabbed the pipe and pulled herself up and over onto the roof. Sheila followed her a few seconds later. They found the roof access hatch. It wasn't secured. They carefully opened it and went down the ladder. They were in total darkness. The ladder was located in a storeroom. They listened at the door but didn't hear anything.

The opened the storeroom door and began to search the building. It appeared empty. They photographed everything as they'd done at the other buildings and allowed CamNet access to the hard drives. The sleeping quarters showed the same thing as the others. There was one bunk with four ropes on the corners.

"I really wonder what happened to the females they had in these places." Ally said. "It seems no one misses a homeless female when she disappears."

Sheila figured what happened to them.

"As long as they don't put the grab on someone that anyone cares about, I don't think anyone pays any attention." Sheila said.

They set up some additional security devices and went back out the way they'd arrived.

They hadn't found anyone at any of the locations. CamNet would monitor them to see if anyone ever turned up. They may have ended this Skynet cell's existence. There may still be one or more out there.

They were fresh out of leads unless CamNet turned up something in the hard drives they allowed her to access.

I Was Not Joking

Many things are said
Some of them are in jest
Perhaps that choice of words
May not have been best

People have their thoughts
They have their own feelings
It seems that is often forgotten
When engaged in personal dealings

Everything said or done matters
Even if some don't think so
That's often where seeds of discontent
Were planted and began to grow

Who is the one we worship
Who is the one we disdain
Sometimes one can be both
It makes one a little insane

One needs to be careful
When at another they go poking
Remember when I strike back
I was not joking

Nobody